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Re: [perl #131685] Rename utf8::is_utf8() (and other functions)

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From:
H.Merijn Brand
Date:
July 12, 2017 06:37
Subject:
Re: [perl #131685] Rename utf8::is_utf8() (and other functions)
Message ID:
20170712083649.3193bb25@pc09.procura.nl
On Tue, 11 Jul 2017 10:41:37 -0700, "Father Chrysostomos via RT"
<perlbug-followup@perl.org> wrote:

> On Tue, 11 Jul 2017 00:55:51 -0700, davem wrote:
> > On Mon, Jul 10, 2017 at 12:45:48PM -0400, Sawyer X wrote:  
> > > Does anyone have any comments on this? Tony, Dave, Zefram? *Karl*? :)  
> > 
> > My opinion on this sort of proposal (and it's an opinion which has gotten
> > stronger over time (*)) is rarely/never to add a new alias name to an
> > existing function.
> > 
> > Alias names just increase the cognitive load. If the old names were
> > confusing, having more names will just increase the confusion.
> > 
> > Before, you would have to remember that a particular function foo() is
> > badly named and doesn't do what you might expect it to do, based solely on
> > the name.
> > 
> > Afterwards, you have to remember that that are two functions foo() and
> > bar(), one is deprecated (which one?), one is badly named (which one?),
> > but they both do the same thing (Or do they? Sigh. Let's check the
> > documentation one more time).
> > 
> > Life is now harder.
> > 
> > (*) My opinion firmed over AvFILL(). It was a weird name, but I was used to
> > it. Now I can never remember what the new alias is called (just looked
> > it up - av_top_index()). In hindsight, I would have voted against adding
> > av_top_index.  
> 
> I agree with everything you have said.  I brought up the same
> objection when this proposal was first put forward, but I thought I
> had lost the debate.  Well, at least there are two of us now. :-)

Count me in: three. I like the way Dave has written down my feelings :)

-- 
H.Merijn Brand  http://tux.nl   Perl Monger  http://amsterdam.pm.org/
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