Path: csiph.com!newsfeed.hal-mli.net!feeder3.hal-mli.net!newspeer1.nac.net!border2.nntp.dca1.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!news.iecc.com!.POSTED!nerds-end From: George Neuner Newsgroups: comp.compilers Subject: Re: specifying semantics, was Formatting of Language LRMs Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2014 22:43:44 -0400 Organization: A noiseless patient Spider Lines: 19 Sender: news@iecc.com Approved: comp.compilers@iecc.com Message-ID: <14-06-028@comp.compilers> References: <14-06-010@comp.compilers> <14-06-023@comp.compilers> <14-06-025@comp.compilers> <14-06-026@comp.compilers> NNTP-Posting-Host: news.iecc.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Trace: miucha.iecc.com 1404012715 8814 2001:470:1f07:1126:0:676f:7373:6970 (29 Jun 2014 03:31:55 GMT) X-Complaints-To: abuse@iecc.com NNTP-Posting-Date: Sun, 29 Jun 2014 03:31:55 +0000 (UTC) Keywords: algol60, history Posted-Date: 28 Jun 2014 23:31:55 EDT X-submission-address: compilers@iecc.com X-moderator-address: compilers-request@iecc.com X-FAQ-and-archives: http://compilers.iecc.com Xref: csiph.com comp.compilers:1283 On Sat, 28 Jun 2014 20:10:27 +0100, Andy Walker wrote: >On 26/06/14 05:54, George Neuner wrote: >> [...] What we refer to as "Backus-Naur Form" >> today is not the original used for Algol-58, [...]. >Backus proposed his system for "metalinguistic formulae" [as used >in the Algol 60 report] in 1959, and it was adopted by Naur, the >editor of the papers and the report defining Algol 60. Yup, I goofed: BNF was Algol 60, not 58. Incidentally, Naur didn't simply adopt Backus's forms, he made a number of improvements. There was a move early to call it Backus Normal Form, but Naur's contribution was deemed significant enough that it came to called Backus-Naur instead. George