[racket-dev] Feature request - contract form that splits provide/contract into two parts

From: Ray Racine (ray.racine at gmail.com)
Date: Fri Dec 14 11:43:42 EST 2012

For the TR folks you can have your cake and eat it with a cup of coffee
with `provide'.  TR Rules

#lang typed/racket/base

;;public interface/w specifications
(provide:
  [inc (Integer -> Integer)])

...

(: inc (Integer -> Integer))
(define (inc x) (add1 x))


...


On Fri, Dec 14, 2012 at 10:44 AM, Matthias Felleisen
<matthias at ccs.neu.edu>wrote:

>
> It is critical to inform clients of the services that a module
> provides. In the absence of types, contracts are the closest
> information we have. Reading the implementation is against
> all good SE ideas.
>
> IF we could assume that people always programmed in DrRacket,
> we could compromise and add a tool that synthesizes the interface
> of a module in some way. Since some contributors break this guideline
> all the time anyway, we should have such a tool available anyway.
>
> BUT there are also people who use Emacs and the other editor.
>
> So, if you want to be good, put provide contract-out at the top
> of your module.
>
>
>
>
>
> On Dec 14, 2012, at 1:02 AM, Harry Spier wrote:
>
> > If you place provide/contract at the beginning of a module it makes
> > the interface clear but it is separated from its function.  If you
> > place it right before its function and not at the top of the module,
> > it makes the function clearer but the module interface is not so
> > clear.
> >
> > Is it possible (would it be a good idea?) to provide a new form that
> > splits the provide/contract form into two parts.  One part the
> > contract definition which you could place immediately before the
> > function definition and the second part a provide spec for inclusion
> > in a provide statement that included the function name but not the
> > contract spec.) .  That way the contract definition can be by the
> > function definition and the function name can be in a provide
> > statement at the beginning of the module.
> >
> > Harry Spier
> > _________________________
> >  Racket Developers list:
> >  http://lists.racket-lang.org/dev
>
> _________________________
>   Racket Developers list:
>   http://lists.racket-lang.org/dev
>
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