If you're interested in mechanisms for abstraction in code, this demo by @jonathoda is worth watching for a radical perspective.
vimeo.com/287270545
Two points stick out to me:
vimeo.com/287270545
Two points stick out to me:
1) Programmers grow comfortable working w/ abstractions. But for end users, any abstraction is a barrier.
It's easy to get started w/ spreadsheets because you don't need to learn about abstractions -- just copy paste your formulas!
It's easy to get started w/ spreadsheets because you don't need to learn about abstractions -- just copy paste your formulas!
https://twitter.com/geoffreylitt/status/1153011646119469058
2) Of course, copy paste can get out of hand quickly. But the demo shows a smart environment where provenance is tracked when you copy-paste, so changes can be propagated between copies as things change.
Great example of the potential of moving beyond dumb text editors.
Great example of the potential of moving beyond dumb text editors.
A fun additional connection: spreadsheets are projectional editors.
Many spreadsheets use relative coordinates internally. You type "A1" but it stores "Left by 2 cells". As you copy-paste the formula, keeps the same relative ref, but points to a different concrete cell each time
Many spreadsheets use relative coordinates internally. You type "A1" but it stores "Left by 2 cells". As you copy-paste the formula, keeps the same relative ref, but points to a different concrete cell each time
The key is that the editor is rich enough to show you some useful projection of the literal internal state.
Similar dynamic in Jonathan's demo as with many projectional editors: because it's not just editing a raw plaintext representation, can do various useful things
Similar dynamic in Jonathan's demo as with many projectional editors: because it's not just editing a raw plaintext representation, can do various useful things
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