Re: First class developer: who ?

On Fri, 12 Mar 2010 10:26:57 +0000, Arved Sandstrom wrote:

Lew wrote:
sl@my-rialto wrote:
Someone says if one does not know the difference between "equality"
and "equivalence", then one is an entry-level developer at best.

What is your opnion ? (I think we should not talk about mathematical
concepts, since it is the software developer in question.)

Patricia Shanahan wrote:
I think the question needs some context to make sense. Both terms are
very heavily overloaded in computer science.

For example, consider the following: "The equals method implements an
equivalence relation on non-null object references:"

http://java.sun.com/javase/6/docs/api/java/lang/Object.html#equals(java.lang.Object)


Maybe this is a rather vague way of getting at the following issue: I
would indeed expect a competent Java developer to understand the
difference, in Java, between a.equals(b) and a==b for reference
expressions a and b.

Well, there we go introducing mathematical concepts, from right there
in the Javadocs, no less!, despite the OP's attempt to eliminate the
only reasonable context in which to answer his point.

Both terms actually have clear English meanings - "equality" means (or
should mean) that two things *are* the same, and "equivalence" means (or
should mean) that two things can be substituted, that they behave the
same way.

A man and woman are equal and yet very different.

--
// This is my opinion.
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: First class developer: who ?
    ... "equivalence", then one is an entry-level developer at best. ... I will assert here that even in English their meanings are not sufficiently ... "logic" is then almost meaningless on natural speech, ...
    (comp.lang.java.programmer)
  • Re: First class developer: who ?
    ... "equivalence", then one is an entry-level developer at best. ... equivalence relation on non-null object references:" ... would indeed expect a competent Java developer to understand the ...
    (comp.lang.java.programmer)
  • Re: First class developer: who ?
    ... "equivalence", then one is an entry-level developer at best. ... would indeed expect a competent Java developer to understand the ... A mathematical and CS definition in fact tracks the common English meanings of these 2 words, and the language concerning Object.equals that Patricia quoted does say exactly this: equals is an implementation of equivalence. ...
    (comp.lang.java.programmer)
  • Re: First class developer: who ?
    ... and "equivalence", then one is an entry-level developer at best. ... In fact when the word "equal" is applied in the sense of gender equality, or equality before the law, or "all men are created equal", such qualifications are made. ... We make exactly the same qualifications in a programming language like Java when we write equals() methods. ...
    (comp.lang.java.programmer)
  • Re: First class developer: who ?
    ... "equivalence", then one is an entry-level developer at best. ... equivalence relation on non-null object references:" ... would indeed expect a competent Java developer to understand the ...
    (comp.lang.java.programmer)