From: Drew Adams <drew.adams@oracle.com>
To: Evgeny Zajcev <lg.zevlg@gmail.com>
Cc: monnier@iro.umontreal.ca, emacs-devel <emacs-devel@gnu.org>
Subject: RE: file-exists-p on empty string
Date: Wed, 27 Feb 2019 15:23:19 -0800 (PST) [thread overview]
Message-ID: <923ee6b0-0d19-4dae-bd58-6a576a892ef4@default> (raw)
In-Reply-To: <CAO=W_Zp4w=hsr+du-5gQGe_R9xdLL0K9G7Cr-JFduHBmbDq_0A@mail.gmail.com>
> > > > The problem is that docstrings describe the behavior of a specific
> > > > function, so they usually don't mention the more general aspects that
> > > > affect all functions of a given subsystem, such as here the general
> > > > treatment of the empty string when used as a file name. Otherwise,
> > > > every file-name-manipulating function would have to repeat this
> > >
> > >
> > > So, maybe FILENAME argument at least could be renamed to NAME to give
> > > at least some hint that this is not a filename, but just a name hint
> > > which will be expanded and canonised to real filename?
> >
> > That's not good enough. It might make sense
> > to you now, now that you know something about
> > how the input is interpreted as a file name.
> >
> > The parameter name FILENAME is more appropriate
> > than NAME. But the doc string should say more
> > about it. You can't rely on just the parameter
> > name to convey all of the meaning that you're
> > (now) reading into it.
>
> But what to do with `file-name-directory` function,
> which returns `nil` to empty string, while
> `file-exists-p` returns `t', and both of them gets
> FILENAME as argument ?
The doc string of each should describe its parameters
and return values. Formal parameter names are a help,
nothing more. Sometimes a parameter name is clear
enough that it can be used inline in a sentence in
such a way that the sentence clarifies its meaning
or its name clarifies the sentence. Sometimes not.
If a parameter name is truly misleading then it should
be changed. I don't think that's the case here (for
either of the functions you mention). But others
might have different opinions.
The point is that the doc string should describe the
function: its behavior, its inputs, its return value,
and its side effects.
next prev parent reply other threads:[~2019-02-27 23:23 UTC|newest]
Thread overview: 34+ messages / expand[flat|nested] mbox.gz Atom feed top
2019-02-27 22:09 file-exists-p on empty string lg.zevlg
2019-02-27 22:23 ` Drew Adams
2019-02-27 22:41 ` Evgeny Zajcev
2019-02-27 23:23 ` Drew Adams [this message]
2019-02-28 0:08 ` Evgeny Zajcev
2019-02-28 1:16 ` Stefan Monnier
-- strict thread matches above, loose matches on Subject: below --
2019-02-27 20:07 lg.zevlg
2019-02-27 21:18 ` Stefan Monnier
2019-02-27 22:01 ` Drew Adams
2019-02-28 3:24 ` Stefan Monnier
2019-03-06 9:51 ` Michael Albinus
2019-03-08 6:11 ` Stefan Monnier
2019-03-09 8:48 ` Michael Albinus
2019-02-27 12:29 Evgeny Zajcev
2019-02-27 14:15 ` Michael Albinus
2019-02-27 15:29 ` Troy Hinckley
2019-02-27 15:43 ` Robert Pluim
2019-02-27 16:01 ` Michael Albinus
2019-02-27 16:55 ` Eli Zaretskii
2019-02-27 18:09 ` Michael Albinus
2019-02-27 16:11 ` Eli Zaretskii
2019-02-27 16:16 ` Robert Pluim
2019-02-27 16:30 ` Andreas Schwab
2019-02-27 19:40 ` lg.zevlg
2019-02-27 15:53 ` Stefan Monnier
2019-02-27 16:00 ` Robert Pluim
2019-02-27 16:15 ` Stefan Monnier
2019-02-27 16:09 ` Eli Zaretskii
2019-02-27 18:42 ` lg.zevlg
2019-02-27 18:46 ` Eli Zaretskii
2019-02-27 19:04 ` lg.zevlg
2019-02-27 19:16 ` Eli Zaretskii
2019-02-27 19:29 ` lg.zevlg
2019-02-27 19:30 ` Stefan Monnier
Reply instructions:
You may reply publicly to this message via plain-text email
using any one of the following methods:
* Save the following mbox file, import it into your mail client,
and reply-to-all from there: mbox
Avoid top-posting and favor interleaved quoting:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posting_style#Interleaved_style
List information: https://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/
* Reply using the --to, --cc, and --in-reply-to
switches of git-send-email(1):
git send-email \
--in-reply-to=923ee6b0-0d19-4dae-bd58-6a576a892ef4@default \
--to=drew.adams@oracle.com \
--cc=emacs-devel@gnu.org \
--cc=lg.zevlg@gmail.com \
--cc=monnier@iro.umontreal.ca \
/path/to/YOUR_REPLY
https://kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/git-send-email.html
* If your mail client supports setting the In-Reply-To header
via mailto: links, try the mailto: link
Be sure your reply has a Subject: header at the top and a blank line
before the message body.
Code repositories for project(s) associated with this public inbox
https://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/emacs.git
This is a public inbox, see mirroring instructions
for how to clone and mirror all data and code used for this inbox;
as well as URLs for read-only IMAP folder(s) and NNTP newsgroup(s).