Path: csiph.com!usenet.pasdenom.info!aioe.org!.POSTED!not-for-mail From: Mike Duffy Newsgroups: comp.lang.javascript Subject: Re: Maintainer of the FAQ Date: Sun, 9 Dec 2012 02:02:45 +0000 (UTC) Organization: Your Company Lines: 31 Message-ID: References: <46247081-75ce-430c-8319-459ddcdf17fe@bx4g2000vbb.googlegroups.com> <1868da91-d142-49ee-8b09-27c0983c1af4@a2g2000yqh.googlegroups.com> <8192572.z9YG5XmbkK@PointedEars.de> NNTP-Posting-Host: eETQTKQofAqaaJF5Km00Kg.user.speranza.aioe.org X-Complaints-To: abuse@aioe.org User-Agent: Xnews/5.04.25 X-Notice: Filtered by postfilter v. 0.8.2 Xref: csiph.com comp.lang.javascript:17620 Patricia Shanahan wrote in news:i5SdneC6so_E717NnZ2dnUVZ_qWdnZ2d@earthlink.com: > As a mathematics student, I learned a very specific meaning for the > word "function". ... I *hate* the way "function" is used > in many programming languages, including JavaScript. As a physics student, I formerly felt much the same about the use of the term "quantum leap" by the general populace. > If you want to know the correct meaning of a word you need to look at > how people really use it. If you want to know the correct meaning of a > technical term in some field, look at how people working in that field > use it. As you say, we just have to change the definition of a term when dealing with those who do not fully understand the details. I am not bothered anymore about journalists using the term "quantum leap" to describe a sociological innovation. I am guessing that what Thomas is concerned about is how difficult it is to provide one set of documentation that can be simultaneously useful to both experts and neophytes. I would suggest using certain terms (like "Javascript") always as a hyperlink to a page that explains any nuances in greater detail. -- http://pages.videotron.ca/duffym/index.htm