Programming puzzles: processing lists!

[DavidM]

(10-18-2017 09:54 AM)pier4r Wrote:  I understand your point of view. Nonetheless, while I do agree that having something "fresh" in our memory would be the best solution because if something is already well available in our brain then our actions are faster (a poor analogy are CPU registers or CPU cache); it is also true that not everyone has those commands readily available (me for example).

If they can be used more often than not, then I think is good to collect them so people can look them up. This because searching those commands with the modern search engines is still pretty hard.

My intent was not to be critical of the process, but rather to explain why I don't tend to think about RPL programming in the same way. It reminds me of one of the differences in how I was taught two different languages. In my teens my Spanish classes were more technically specific... word-for-word comparisons and specific grammatical rules. At the university level, I had zwei Semester of German, and the approach used was more focused on paraphrasing and comparative ideas. The grammar and syntax was still important, of course, but less so than with the Spanish instruction.

Unfortunately I didn't stay immersed with either language, so I never gained any level of proficiency with them. I think of programming (computer, calculator, or otherwise) in a similar fashion -- fluency requires practice, and my proficiency increases when I am able to focus more on approach than specific details of individual steps. The freedom to do that increases as I commit more of the "building blocks" to memory. The best way to do that for me may not be the best way for you, of course. That's why I think of it more as a stylistic approach.