in reply to Re^2: Down-vote Bad, Up-vote Good
in thread Down-vote Bad, Up-vote Good

Nope, they are not rules, they are guidelines.

CountZero

A program should be light and agile, its subroutines connected like a string of pearls. The spirit and intent of the program should be retained throughout. There should be neither too little or too much, neither needless loops nor useless variables, neither lack of structure nor overwhelming rigidity." - The Tao of Programming, 4.1 - Geoffrey James

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Re^4: Down-vote Bad, Up-vote Good
by Anonymous Monk on Jun 04, 2009 at 07:00 UTC 
    --- [from gcide] ---
guidelines \guidelines\ n. hypen is changed from WN: adjust
   hier.
   a rule or set of rules giving guidance on how to behave in a
   situation.

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[reply]
[d/l]
      A "rule" is binding; "guidance" is less strict as any lawyer will be able to tell you. So that definition is plainly wrong: you cannot have "rules" giving "guidance".

      Take the following example:

      1. a "speed limit" sign is a rule: you may not go faster.
      2. A "signpost" is a guidance: you are free to ignore the directions to your destination (and you will probably get lost, but that is besides the question here)

      CountZero

      A program should be light and agile, its subroutines connected like a string of pearls. The spirit and intent of the program should be retained throughout. There should be neither too little or too much, neither needless loops nor useless variables, neither lack of structure nor overwhelming rigidity." - The Tao of Programming, 4.1 - Geoffrey James

[reply]
        This is not a court of law, so liars rules don't apply.
[reply]

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