unary +

[Frank Adams]

In article <687 at bentley.UUCP> kwh at bentley.UUCP writes:
>In article <2323 at brl-smoke.ARPA> HARGED%ti-eg.csnet at CSNET-RELAY.ARPA writes:
>>Folks, no two ways about it: "a + +(b + c)" looks very strange (it looks
>>like a typographical error), particularly when it is *required* to
>>accomplish what most people intuitively assume "a + (b + c)" will
>>accomplish.  From a human factors standpoint, this proposal is a
>>disaster.

Let me repeat my suggestion that "a + [b + c]" be used for this purpose.
It isn't *obvious* what it is intended to mean differently from "a + (b + c)",
but it at least doesn't look like a typographical error.  Use of brackets
of arbitrary shape or size has a long mathematical tradition.

Frank Adams                           ihnp4!philabs!pwa-b!mmintl!franka
Multimate International    52 Oakland Ave North    E. Hartford, CT 06108