Re^2: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community

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Re^3: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by TimToady (Parson) on Nov 22, 2005 at 17:01 UTC
Being a linguist does not prevent one from wanting to make fine distinctions when such distinctions are useful. Being a linguist also means that you understand it's okay to ignore those distinctions when they aren't useful. Case distinctions are particularly nice when you want to have it both ways. I have several T-shirts in my closet that say PERL, and yes, that does bother me just a little. Nevertheless, I do not refuse to wear them because of that. A linguist cannot afford to confuse utility with principle.	[reply]
Re^4: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by thor (Priest) on Nov 22, 2005 at 17:43 UTC
I'm no linguist, so I might be just flapping my virtual gums, but it seems to me that when a given spelling means two or more different things in natural language, it's for historical reasons. For example, I'm sure that "dessert" was not designed to mean all of "a dry place", "a small meal after the main meal", and "to leave". It just kind of happened that way. I'd have to imagine that one of the finer points in learning a new language is distinguishing between words that are spelled the same. So, when it is said that it was intentional overloading of one spelling to mean multiple things, I have to scratch my head. thor `Feel the white light, the light within Be your own disciple, fan the sparks of will For all of us waiting, your kingdom will come`	[reply]
Re^5: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by merlyn (Sage) on Nov 22, 2005 at 18:10 UTC
But "dessert" = "a small tasty aftermeal treat". The other two are "desert"! {grin} -- Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker Be sure to read my standard disclaimer if this is a reply.	[reply]
Re^6: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by thor (Priest) on Nov 22, 2005 at 20:09 UTC
Re^7: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by chanio (Priest) on Nov 23, 2005 at 02:05 UTC
Re^3: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by chromatic (Archbishop) on Nov 23, 2005 at 01:49 UTC
Impress me with how much you know, your attention to detail, and how you're the right person for the job. Don't try to impress me with distracting, inappropriate "creativity" that just looks like sloppiness. Take me seriously as a potential employer or team lead and I'll take you seriously as a capable professional.	[reply]
Re^4: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by thor (Priest) on Nov 23, 2005 at 14:34 UTC
Conversely, if you weed me out based on esoterica, then perhaps we weren't a good match in the first place. Spelling it "PERL" does not a bad Perl programmer make. thor `Feel the white light, the light within Be your own disciple, fan the sparks of will For all of us waiting, your kingdom will come`	[reply]
Re^5: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by merlyn (Sage) on Nov 23, 2005 at 14:52 UTC
Spelling it "PERL" does not a bad Perl programmer make. You're not disagreeing with me. But you are perhaps missing the point then. Try re-reading the head of this thread. -- Randal L. Schwartz, Perl hacker Be sure to read my standard disclaimer if this is a reply.	[reply]
Re^6: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by thor (Priest) on Nov 23, 2005 at 15:34 UTC
Re^7: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by merlyn (Sage) on Nov 23, 2005 at 15:42 UTC
Some notes below your chosen depth have not been shown here
Re^3: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by gregor42 (Parson) on Jan 21, 2006 at 18:00 UTC
But that's the thing: in the cases you've given, the arrangement of letters is different, which would lead to different words. The difference between "perl", "Perl", and "PERL" is capitalization; their respective arrangements of letters is the same. OK then, we can use another example of something you wouldn't want on a resume: therapist vs. TheRapist Wait! This isn't a Parachute, this is a Backpack!	[reply]
Re^4: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by thor (Priest) on Jan 23, 2006 at 18:53 UTC
What you're missing is that with that capitalization, you're either making a wiki entry, or you think that you're some kind of cool Java programmer. Not that there's anything wrong with that...;) thor `The only easy day was yesterday`	[reply]
Re^4: PERL as shibboleth and the Perl community by jZed (Prior) on Jan 21, 2006 at 18:32 UTC
LOL! When I used to do career counseling, my two favorites were "Resent Work Experience" and "Louts 1-2-3".	[reply]