[plug] Community Seminars

Craig Ringer craig at postnewspapers.com.au
Fri Jun 18 18:24:59 WST 2004


Cameron Patrick wrote:

> | Try to explain the difference between program and data. Should be
> | easy if you're in a library.
> 
> I don't think it's a particularly easy distinction to make.  Is HTML
> code a programme or data?  How about TeX?  What about Docbook which
> can be used to generate the other two?  Python or Java code with
> embedded docstrings?  Literate programmes like TeX, Metafont or ifupdown?

For basic users it's pretty easy, and some oversimplification can easily 
be forgiven. Would /you/ want to go into how a Word document can be a 
program (much as you wish it couldn't) with a user who is still 
struggling to understand that you don't have to close one program to use 
another?

--
Craig Ringer




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