Re: Conventions - Mailing list pgsql-docs

From Tom Lane
Subject Re: Conventions
Date
Msg-id 2517650.1643250838@sss.pgh.pa.us
Whole thread Raw
In response to Re: Conventions  (Bruce Momjian <bruce@momjian.us>)
Responses Re: Conventions
List pgsql-docs
Bruce Momjian <bruce@momjian.us> writes:
> OK, updated patch attached.  I don't think we even show TCL syntax
> anywhere anymore, so I removed that text, rather than moving it.

I really don't care for this phrasing at all:

-     the body of a PL/Tcl function:
+     the body of a PL/Tcl function (brackets (<literal>[</literal> and
+     <literal>]</literal>) are represented here as question marks):

It's unclear whether you mean actual brackets or metasyntactic brackets;
somebody who hasn't completely internalized the notion of brackets as
indicating optional elements would be particularly likely to
misunderstand.

I'd also suggest that wedging this into a parenthetic remark between a
sentence and the example the sentence is talking about is awkward.

I'd suggest a separate para at some point before the first usage,
along the lines of

   In this section, we follow the usual Tcl convention of using question
   marks, rather than brackets, to indicate an optional element in a
   syntax synopsis.

            regards, tom lane



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