Consider the package expr evaluates to.

Consider the package expr evaluates to.

[znavko]

I cannot understand this string from manual:
"Consider the package expr evaluates to."

I cannot translate it using dictionary. Please, could you rephrase it for me?

There the link to `guix build --expression` make some sense: "-e expr 

	Build the package or derivation expr evaluates to. "

As I understand: To build the package or derivation that responds to expression (or that contains expression). Am I right?

But that first line I definitely can't understand.

Re: Consider the package expr evaluates to.

[Andreas Enge]

On Sun, Jun 23, 2019 at 06:27:26PM +0000, znavko@disroot.org wrote:
> I cannot understand this string from manual:
> "Consider the package expr evaluates to."

This is an English shortcut for the following:
"Consider the package to which expr evaluates."

So when expr is evaluated, it becomes a package; consider this package.

Actually I wonder whether it should not be in passive voice?
"Consider the package to which expr is evaluated?". Native speaker needed!

Andreas

Re: Consider the package expr evaluates to.

[znavko]

'Expression is evaluated'??
Maybe better is 'the package that matches expression'?

'Consider' - here it means 'to use'. But dictionary meaning of 'consider' is 'think about', 'regard' [1], so this is hard for understanding.

Guix Manual, in general, has simple language, good understanding, but sometimes its author cracks reader's mind.

Hope it will be rewritten and some sensual things (such as partitioning and typing Bios Grub config) will be added.

[1] https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/consider

June 24, 2019 3:50 PM, "Andreas Enge" <andreas@enge.fr> wrote:

> On Sun, Jun 23, 2019 at 06:27:26PM +0000, znavko@disroot.org wrote:
> 
>> I cannot understand this string from manual:
>> "Consider the package expr evaluates to."
> 
> This is an English shortcut for the following:
> "Consider the package to which expr evaluates."
> 
> So when expr is evaluated, it becomes a package; consider this package.
> 
> Actually I wonder whether it should not be in passive voice?
> "Consider the package to which expr is evaluated?". Native speaker needed!
> 
> Andreas

Re: Consider the package expr evaluates to.

[Mark H Weaver]

Hi,

znavko@disroot.org writes:

> 'Expression is evaluated'??
> Maybe better is 'the package that matches expression'?

No, that's definitely not right.  That wording suggests some kind of
pattern matching, which is not what's happening at all.  Evaluation is a
process that takes an expression and produces a value.  For example,
(+ 1 2) is an expression that evaluates to 3.  The expression is a list
with three elements: the symbol +, the number 1, and the number 2.  The
result of evaluating that expression is the number 3.

> 'Consider' - here it means 'to use'. But dictionary meaning of
> 'consider' is 'think about', 'regard' [1], so this is hard for
> understanding.

I agree that the word "consider" is a bad choice in that sentence.
It would be better to change "consider" to "use".

     Thanks,
       Mark

Re: Consider the package expr evaluates to.

[swedebugia]

On 2019-06-29 05:32, Mark H Weaver wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> znavko@disroot.org writes:
...
>> 'Consider' - here it means 'to use'. But dictionary meaning of
>> 'consider' is 'think about', 'regard' [1], so this is hard for
>> understanding.
> 
> I agree that the word "consider" is a bad choice in that sentence.
> It would be better to change "consider" to "use".

+1

-- 
Cheers
Swedebugia