RE: Is this the Free-Format that we asked for?

["M. Lazarus" <mlazarus@xxxxxxxx>]

Scott,

Scott,

  I don't think I was clear enough.  I think that we agree more than disagree.

At 11/2/00 04:24 PM -0600, you wrote:
>If you want to "only have one statement per line" and "only have to
>code for the exceptions", then use the method that CL uses where there
>is a "+" at the end of the lines that need to be continued.  In other
>words, a continuation character as opposed to a statement terminator.

  In that case, the "exception" is that we need to continue a statement 
onto the next line.  Use a continuation character.

>However, I still would DEFINITELY prefer the semicolon at the end of each
>statement.  Typing the damned "+" sign at the end of each line can be very 
>tiresome!

  I never said to use it on every statement!  I said that we SHOULDN'T have 
a termination character.

>On the subject of GOTO's, yuck.  Remove them.  Even with RPG IV in its
>current state, if one of my programmers is using GOTO's I sit down and
>teach him program structure.

  You're assuming that we all have the luxury of never maintaining old, 
ugly code that, for various reasons can't be completely rewritten and 
tested.  There has to be a good reason to remove something from the 
language, other than to force everyone to write better code.  If someone's 
a poor programmer, making GOTO's unavailable will not magically make them 
better.

  -mark

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