Thorham Posted March 22, 2016 Posted March 22, 2016 So, my post making a point about semantics wasn't nonsense- it's just that you didn't understand it. No. Words mean what they mean.
John Cuthber Posted March 23, 2016 Posted March 23, 2016 No. Words mean what they mean Are you sure you didn't intend to type "no words mean what they mean"? Because that's the whole point of a semantic debate.
Strange Posted March 23, 2016 Posted March 23, 2016 (edited) No. Words mean what they mean. Words have many meanings and can be ambiguous. They mean different things to different people. Meanings change over time. Your statement is, ironically, effectively meaningless. Edited March 23, 2016 by Strange
Thorham Posted March 25, 2016 Posted March 25, 2016 Are you sure you didn't intend to type "no words mean what they mean"? Yes, I'm quite sure that what I typed is what I intended. Words have many meanings and can be ambiguous. Software bug is defined to have a particular meaning, and there's no good reason to change it. Everyone knows what is meant by it, so it serves it's purpose. Otherwise, why not debate 'Big Bang'? It wasn't big (it's big now), and it wasn't a bang, so it should be named something else. Is that useful? Then there's stuff like digital downloads and physical distributions. Everyone knows what those mean, even though downloads are both digital and physical, while physical distributions are also both digital and physical. And as annoying as they sound to me, it doesn't matter, because it's just the way people talk. As for software bug, it refers to the human requirements, and for this purpose the term 'software bug' is fine. Nothing wrong with it. They mean different things to different people. Many words mean the same thing to most people, or we wouldn't be able to effectively communicate. Also: Dictionaries
John Cuthber Posted March 25, 2016 Posted March 25, 2016 "Software bug is defined to have a particular meaning, and there's no good reason to change it."OK, so it's the word for a computer malfunction literally caused by a bug.It is said to date back to the days of electromechanical computers where insects would get into the machinery because it was warm and then their physical presence would disrupt operation of the machine. In which case it's easy to keep bugs out of computing- you just need a mosquito net or fly spray. but actually, the usage of the word bug as an error predates that. So we are back to square one. It's trivially false that all software has bugs; and yet the question got asked 1
Thorham Posted March 25, 2016 Posted March 25, 2016 (edited) OK, so it's the word for a computer malfunction literally caused by a bug. Yes, and today hardware bug refers to mistakes in implementing electronics designs such as in integrated circuits. The old Pentium is an example of this. It is said to date back to the days of electromechanical computers where insects would get into the machinery because it was warm and then their physical presence would disrupt operation of the machine.[/font][/color] Yes, but it's not what software bug refers to. Dictionaries say that a software bug is a mistake in a program, so that's the meaning I'm going to use. It's trivially false that all software has bugs; and yet the question got asked Obviously. Edited March 25, 2016 by Thorham
John Cuthber Posted March 25, 2016 Posted March 25, 2016 Thank you for taking the time to frame your argument so convincingly. I'm sure that you will have changed everyone's mind on this matter.
Thorham Posted March 25, 2016 Posted March 25, 2016 (edited) Thank you for taking the time to frame your argument so convincingly. When using dictionaries, you're using words as they are defined in the dictionaries That means that when you talk about stuff, everyone will know what you're talking about Edited March 25, 2016 by Thorham
John Cuthber Posted March 25, 2016 Posted March 25, 2016 OK, so, since everyone was using the dictionary definitions of all the words involved, there was no way that anyone would bother to ask if there was a " proof that "all software has bugs?"" Which takes us back to square one again. Is it just me , or is there a sense of Deja vu here?
Greg H. Posted March 26, 2016 Posted March 26, 2016 (edited) Since we seem to have divulged into the "words have dictionary definitions" topic, I'd just like to point out that the word "run" has no less that 645 definitions in the English language1. So saying that words have meanings, while technically true, does not get any closer to which of those meanings was actually meant at any given time. You need context for that. And even then, context may not be enough. If I say "I am running to the store." does that mean:A) I am literally running (as in self motivating using my feet at a quick pace) orB) I am going to the store, but I am probably driving.Now normally, you mean B. But hey, maybe Jesse Owens literally did run to the the store. (That does seem to be his thing). Meaning comes from more than the simple dictionary definition. Words gain context, they have connotations, and even your audience may alter which words you choose to convey a specific meaning.Any chance we could get back to the "all software has bugs" thing now? Or split this asinine discussion into another topic?.1: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/29/opinion/29winchester.html?_r=0 Edited March 26, 2016 by Greg H. 1
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