I respect Guy Steel a lot but this argument is like complaining that b = 1 doesn't compare b to 1 and return a boolean. Lots of novice programmer think that'

I respect Guy Steel a lot but this argument is like complaining that b = 1 doesn't compare b to 1 and return a boolean. Lots of novice programmer think that's what equals should do based on familiarity with mathematics. Using = for assignment doesn't help them solve problems either but it's what those with experience of programming generally expect.