Orchid XP v8 wrote:
> The Eiffel assignment operator is actually ":=", with "=" representing 
> (value) equality. But hey, I wouldn't know a "formal lanuage" if it hit 
> me...

A formal language is one with semantics defined by rewrite rules, for 
example. I.e., one concrete enough you can actually prove things about it. 
Eiffel's pre and post conditions are a first step towards that.

>>> I think he was trying to counter the old "there is no mathematical 
>>> theory to OOP".
>>
>> And for the most part there isn't. There's hand-waving mathematics, 
>> but not something precise enough you can automate it.
> 
> It's more the point that every OOP language has a slightly different 
> idea about the precise definition of "object", "class", "inheritance", 
> and so forth. 

That's not really the problem, as long as you define it precisely.

> Even Haskell doesn't actually possess a denotational semantics - what 
> ever the hell *that* means!

I need to go watch some football with the wife, but I'll give you an example 
of LOTOS's semantics later, if you remind me. :-)

-- 
   Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
   Why is there a chainsaw in DOOM?
   There aren't any trees on Mars.

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