[racket] Racket style guide (was Re: Argument order conventions (was: Variable naming conventions))

On Fri, Sep 23, 2011 at 12:29:07AM -0400, Neil Van Dyke wrote:
> Hendrik Boom wrote at 09/22/2011 08:16 PM:
> >Software Engineering is the art of getting things done with large
> >numbers of relatively stupid programmers -- because there aren't
> >enough really good programmers.
> 
> That certainly seems to be the predominant Java school of thought. :)
> 
> I'm going to quibble with this use of the term "software
> engineering", since I have somewhat different notions of the term,
> which have been important to me.  I'll admit in advance that my own
> definitions are fuzzy here...
> 
> Some of my earlier career, starting when I switched from being a
> programmer kid with my own tiny software business, to a lowly intern
> (below even Software Technician I, which itself was two big hops
> below Software Engineer I), was on process and tools for critical
> aerospace/datacomm/etc. software.  So that was where my notion of
> "software engineering" started.  Closer to "how do we build
> something necessarily complex that will do what is needed and work
> properly" than "how do we get 40 clerical workers to code these 400
> data entry screens and 400 reports that we think we need".
> 
> Most recently, in some of my consulting work, the flavor of software
> engineering that I practice involves *small* numbers of smart
> software developers, who use engineering discipline (and usually
> Racket) to implement functionality in a way that will be reliable in
> production and maintainable in the future, despite constraints
> (time, resources, information, coordination, etc.).  There is an
> element of art to this, true.  There's lots of analytic speculation
> and balancing of concerns going on, in addition to applying accepted
> best practices.

It sounds as if your group might actually succeed in getting something 
useful done.

-- hendrik