RE: [xsl] how to reassign a variable's value?

[Wendell Piez <wapiez@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Maybe it's the designers of the original languages that said "LET X = X + 
1" (which makes no sense mathematically, as even I can see, at least using 
the '+' operator I know) that mistakenly appropriated the term "variable" 
for a named something that could be reassigned a new value. Then needing a 
term for that class of named somethings whose value could (or would) not be 
changed, they picked "constant".

There's a silver lining to the recurring dark cloud of confusion over 
what's an XSLT "variable". It's good for all computer programmers (and 
people too!) to learn how slippery are words, even technical terms. Learn 
that and you have at least a prayer of coming to understand how things 
actually work.

At 03:38 AM 8/13/2002, you wrote:
> Charles Knell [mailto:cknell@xxxxxxxxxx] wrote:
> > It is constant within a context and variable between contexts.
> > "Varinstant", perhaps?
>
> Or "Constable"? That'd cause some confusion! :-)
>
> Dan.


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