Re: [Maxima-users] What is special about the variable c ?

>>>>> "Richard" == Richard Fateman <fateman@cs.berkeley.edu> writes:

    Richard> Raymond Toy wrote:

    >> I personally wish maxima didn't allow upper and lower case, and
    >> converted everything to lower case. :-)  I never have variables named
    >> n and N and really expect them to be different.
    >> 
    >> Another annoying side effect of the prompt changes is that I can no
    >> longer refer to the output as easily as I used to when I'm in lisp.  I
    >> used to be able to say $D8 to get the Lisp representation of the
    >> output D8.  Now I have to say |$%o8|.  Rather annoying.  $%o8 is
    >> annoying enough but having to remember to escape just adds to it.
    >> 
    Richard> If you were using Allegro Common Lisp in its "Modern"
    Richard> setting, and if Maxima could be run in this setting
    Richard> (non-ANSI), then you could write %o8 without escapes.

Yes, but, as you say, that's non-ANSI.

    Richard> The preference for lower case was established, at least
    Richard> in my mind, by UNIX, circa 1972 or so.

I prefer lower case as well, but that doesn't prevent me from working
in Lisp.  Perhaps having :invert-case when printing would work.  Then
$%o8 would work in Lisp because it's really $%O8, but it would get
printed out $%o8.  

But I haven't thought this out completely.

I guess this issue would only matter to the few developers who are
working with both maxima and Lisp.  Users are probably only using the
maxima language, so this doesn't bother them.

Ray