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Date:	Fri, 6 Apr 2001 06:27:22 PST
From:	"Lynn H. Maxson" <lmaxson@pacbell.net >
Reply-To:	scoug-sundialsig@scoug.com
To:	Scoug Sundial Sig <scoug-sundialsig@scoug.com >
Subject:	SCOUG-SundialSIG: Early feedback

Content Type: text/plain

Carla is partially correct about my motives. I had asked Rollin
to establish this mailing list at last months SCOUG meeting. When
he informed me that he had then the next thing was to announce it
in the newsletter and at next month's meeting. Two of my reasons
for submitting the cryptic message was, one, to determine my
membership on the list and, two, to insure that I understood it
was working.

I do hope that we can use this to complement the alternate month
meetings as well as supplement any discussion which takes place
there. I'm anxious to get this off to a rolling (something
similar to a Rollin) start and thus extremely pleased with the
audience who responded.

At our initial meeting two months ago someone expressed interest
in learning more about "equations" in MESA. Perhaps the first
lesson lies in getting them to refer to them in MESA speak as
"formulas". As formulas represent a form of programming and
many people use spreadsheets as databases and two people
approached me about APL, I thought we might take a more general
approach on formulas.

As such I'm thinking about "programming" of using formulas in
MESA, queries in DBExpert, and statements in APL. As they can get
MESA and DBExpert from Sundial, one of which they should have
already purchased, and download TRYAPL from the IBM site, we
should be able to extend the general comprehension of what these
have in common as well as the different perspectives, advantages,
and disadvantages.

To go along with this I have some extra sets of APL keycaps, two
of which I have already promised at the last meeting. Anyone with
a PS/2 keyboard with replaceable keycaps can replicate the
keyboards on my machines. If anyone on this mailing list would
like a set, let me know and I will have them at the next meeting
as well.

I stopped attending the Programming SIG because it emphasized
programming languages instead of programming which deals with
specification, analysis, design, construction, and testing. To
focus simply on the construction stage as if that were the all in
all is to make the mistake which dogs the spiraling costs of
software as well as accounts for its general lack of robustness.

At any rate those are just a few thoughts I toss out for
consideration and discussion.

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