[swift-evolution] When to use argument labels, part DEUX (was: when to use argument labels (a new approach))

[Zach Waldowski]

+1 to all involved. These are great, and tie together the previous
revisions well.

I too am not entirely sold on `move(from:to:)`, but I don't think it'll
kill anyone to write it in their own projects.

Cheers!
Zach Waldowski
zach at waldowski.me

On Fri, Feb 5, 2016, at 04:32 PM, Dave Abrahams via swift-evolution
wrote:
> 
> Given all the awesome feedback I've gotten on this thread, I went back
> to the drawing board and came up with something new; I think this one
> works.  The previously-stated goals still apply:
> 
> * describe when and where to use argument labels
> * require labels in many of the cases people have asked for them
> * are understandable by humans (this means relatively simple)
> * preserve important semantics communicated by existing APIs.
> 
> Please keep in mind that it is a non-goal to capture considerations we
> think have a bearing on good names (such as relatedness of parameters):
> it's to create simple guidelines that have the right effect in nearly
> all cases.
> 
> A. When arguments can't be usefully distinguished from one another, none
>    should have argument labels, e.g. min(x,y), zip(x,y,z).  
> 
> B. Otherwise,
> 
>   1. At the call site, a first parameter that has no argument label must
>      form part of a grammatical phrase that starts with the basename,
>      less
>      any trailing nouns.  
> 
>        print(x)
>        a.contains(b)
>        a.mergeWith(b)
>        a.addGestureRecognizer(x)
>             ^~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ trailing noun
> 
>      This phrase must have the correct semantic implications, so, e.g.
> 
>        a.dismiss(b)           // no, unless a is really dismissing b
>        a.dismissAnimated(b)   // no, not grammatical
>        a.dismiss(animated: b) // yes, using a label
> 
>   2. If the first argument is part of a prepositional phrase, put the
>      parenthesis immediately after the preposition. 
> 
>        a.encodeWith(b)
>        a.moveFrom(b, to: c)
> 
>      Thus, if words are required for any reason between the preposition
>      and the first argument, they go into the first argument label.
> 
>        a.tracksWith(mediaType: b, composer: c)
>        a.moveTo(x: 22, y: 99)
> 
> Notes: 
> 
> a. I would recommend prepositions other than "with" in nearly all
>    cases, but that's not the point of these rules.
> b. I can understand the aesthetic appeal of
> 
>     a.move(from: b, to: c)
> 
>    but I believe it is not a clear enough improvement to justify
>    additional complexity in the guidelines.
> 
> Questions:
> 
> 1. I'm not expecting these guidelines to make everybody optimally happy,
>    all the time, but they shouldn't be harmful.  Are there any cases for
>    which they produce results you couldn't live with?
> 
> 2. Are there any cases where you'd be confused about how to apply these
>    guidelines?
>                                
> Thanks in advance for all your valuable input!
> 
> P.S. Doug is presently working on generating new importer results, based
>      on these guidelines, for your perusal.  They should be ready soon.
> 
> -- 
> -Dave
> 
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