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On appropriate boilerplate

by merlyn (Sage)
on Oct 15, 2002 at 13:40 UTC ( [id://205373]=note: print w/replies, xml ) Need Help??


in reply to Re: •Re: Re: Get All Duplicated Elements in an Array (Once, without shifting)
in thread Get All Duplicated Elements in an Array (Once, without shifting)

If you consider that a "rip on people", you've not been around here for very long.

{grin}

On a more serious note... has it really gotten so weird in here that I can't even point out when code won't compile?

What boilerplate do I need to precede every posting with? Something like:

Attention!
The following comment is never meant personally. You are not your code. I most likely do not even know you personally, and don't make presumptions about your character or habits based on a single posting. I'm only commenting on the ability for the code you posted to do its stated task, with particular attention being paid to :
  • Security
  • Maintainability
  • Avoiding needless reimplementation
  • Contribution to the community
If I sound like I'm flaming, please re-read the message a few more times until you see that it's about the code and the Perl community, and not about you personally. That is all. Thank you.
Would that help?

-- Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
On human nature
by thor (Priest) on Oct 16, 2002 at 00:14 UTC
    My profile says that I've been around for almost 2 years now, so I'd say that I've been here long enough. It's fine to point out errors, but the manner in which you do it leaves a lot to be desired. In your boilerplate, you suggest reading the post a few more times. Unfortunately, first impressions are everything. If I read something and think it's offensive, I'm sure as hell not going to re-read it, just to see if the poster's intentions were neutral. It's human nature to take things at face value unless a deeper meaning is suspected. A simple "I think you meant $hash{$_}++" would have sufficed. However, you decided to get clever. Remember, that tone of voice is lost in written communication. Though you may have meant what you said in jest, I took it the wrong way, and I let it be known. Also of note, this can't be the first time that someone has called you on your tone, otherwise you wouldn't have gone to the trouble of making a boilerplate to pre-defend your words (I realize that you're not serious about the boilerplate, but still, more time than I would have bothered putting in to it).

    To summarize, you may be a very good Perl coder, but if people close their ears before listening to what you have to say, your contribution to the community is minimized.

    thor

        Unfortunately, first impressions are everything.

      Or fortunately. I was fortunate enough to read Learning Perl, and realize that merlyn is not only an adept writer, but that he also cares deeply about the subject matter. That was my first impression.

      Now I come here and don't even have to pay money to learn from him. He just reviews code for free. Not a bad deal. One of these days I want my company to be making the kind of money that can bring Mr. Schwartz in for a week to do hands on training and code review with me and my fellow coders. Until then, I thank not only merlyn, but all of the other donors here at Perlmonks.

      They are helping me become a better programmer. For free. That's tough to beat.

      -- dug
        merlyn is not only an adept writer, but that he also cares deeply about the subject matter.
        I don't doubt this for a bit. In fact, I couldn't agree more. What I am questioning here is what management likes to call "soft skills". Communication when someone else is on the receiving end is different than putting knowledge on a piece of paper. Arguably, the latter is easier.

        thor

        A reply falls below the community's threshold of quality. You may see it by logging in.
      Hmm, interesting fact: my first impression of Merlyn's comment was not offensive at all. I mean, I happen to have read the appropriate Apocalypse about dereferencing List/Hash elements. For me, Merlyn's comment just looks like an enlightenment on the subject rather than saying "you're plain wrong" - a way of giving help and improve indpendent judgement at once.

      On the other hand, if you're just here for some cut-and-paste coding, this way of thinking is likely a mere distraction.

      Anyway, from Apocalypse 2 (not the main discussion about interpolation, but it's mentioned here as well):

      Note for those who are thinking we should just stick with Perl 5 interpolation rules: We have to allow % to introduce interpolation now because individual hash values are no longer named with $foo{$bar}, but rather %foo{$bar}. So we might as well allow interpolation of complete hashes.

      Conclusion: I don't think this discussion is worth a standard reply disclaimer block ;-)

      --
      Cheers, Joe

Re: On appropriate boilerplate
by Anonymous Monk on Nov 08, 2010 at 21:07 UTC
    I was fortunate enough to take a class taught by Randall Schwartz. Not only was it my first introduction to Perl, it was my first introduction to ANY form of coding. I thought he was fantastic and if I was fortunate enough to have my code commented on by Merlyn, then you can believe that I would take whatever he said to heart (regardless of the tone of delivery). I am so sick and tired of all the PC BS and all of these 'Adults' crying over little things like this. The Bottom line is this: If you don't like criticism, don't ask for it !! At least he didn't tell you to RTFM !!!! Get over it, cry in silence then FIX YOUR CODE AND MOVE ON !!!!

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