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Newsgroups: comp.lang.java.programmer
From: Andreas Leitgeb <avl@gamma.logic.tuwien.ac.at>
Subject: Re: Style Police (a rant)
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Date: 11 Sep 2011 14:07:31 GMT
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Lew <lewbloch@gmail.com> wrote:
> Andreas Leitgeb wrote:
>> I'd favor a different change:  let final variables optionally
>> have their type inferred:
>>   final myList = new ArrayList<String>();
>> Afterall, it is just a handle for some previously obtained value.
> That idea is more complex than it appears.  Should the inferred type be
> 'List<String>', 'AbstractList<String>' or 'ArrayList<String>'?
> I suspect you would say the last,

You suspected right, which is no surprise, as it is the only reasonable
choice in that particular context.

> but really, is it so very, very bad to type
>   final List<String> myList = new ArrayList<>();

I find the direction of the inferral somewhat unlucky.
I'd rather infer the type from right(expression) to left(variable),
than the other way round.  I guess that was discussed thoroughly
before it was introduced, so I might just miss knowing those perfect 
arguments against my preferrence.

> ?  I mean, if you want to talk hard work, an extra second or so of
> typing really doesn't qualify,

It seems that you're biased towards reading other's code versus 
writing your own.  Typing long code isn't the problem - typing
redundant boilerplates is ... fatigueing. It dumbs the joy
of programming.

> especially since the lack of the supposedly "redundant" types would
> harm readability for maintainers.  

That is a claim, of whose truth I'm not at all convinced.
If in a particular situation, the type really wasn't obvious,
then there'd still be the choice of making it explicit.

> As one whose career has involved far more maintenance of existing
> code than development of new, I much prefer the explicit typing.
So much to affirm the diagnosed bias...

> Wanja's main point is that 'final' has a semantic purpose, not an
> optimization one.
So far I agree.

>   I agree that the evidence for the advantage of a 'var' keyword
> over a 'final' is lacking,

That Wanja suggested the "var" keyword is an indication of that he has
a bias towards functional programming.  Unlike Arne, I don't say that
"pick a different language" is an appropriate answer. It's ok, to program
functionally in Java, as far as possible in Java-syntax, and that this
may lead to quite a lot of "final"s.
I just disagree with Wanja as to making "final" the default: it's
like bullying others to functional style in Java.