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Date: Fri, 21 Dec 2012 08:58:54 +0000
From: lipska the kat <lipskathekat@yahoo.co.uk>
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Subject: Re: proper use of .java files (layout)
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On 20/12/12 22:00, Patricia Shanahan wrote:
> On 12/20/2012 1:35 PM, Gene Wirchenko wrote:
>> On Thu, 20 Dec 2012 09:30:09 -0800, Patricia Shanahan <pats@acm.org>
> ...
>>> Perhaps more importantly, why do we need an order?
>>
>> Many card games require order to rank hands or determine which
>> card beats which.
>
> I agree that a game may require and impose an order, but each game's
> order is different. Indeed, the order can even change during a game. For
> example, the ranking for winning trick in a bridge game depends on the
> contract and the suit of the trick's lead card.
>
> I expect many games to declare and use a Comparator<Card>. I'm
> suggesting that Card should not itself be Comparable.
>

A Comparator is an abstraction of what we as human beings do when we 
compare values. You can have a Comparator that compares in any way you want.

A Comparator would effectively implement a sub set of the rules of the 
game. Seems a perfectly logical suggestion to me

Once again if not a Comparator then what. It's all vary well playing 
devils advocate but sooner or later something actually needs to be 
written down. Asking 'why do we need an order' exposes either a 
surprisingly poor insight into a very common phenomena (the Playing 
Card/Card Game) or a pathalogical reluctance to commit oneself to a 
potential solution for fear of it being 'wrong' somewhere down the line.

Object Oriented software engineering provides many mechanisms to deal 
with changing requirements, altered and enhanced insights and good old 
fashioned 'mistakes' Of course first you need to have the idea.

lipska

-- 
Lipska the KatŠ: Troll hunter, sandbox destroyer
and farscape dreamer of Aeryn Sun