2 ms·

If rule-based highlighting of syntax is meaningfully helpful for reading code then how come nobody uses rule-based syntax highlighting of prose? Why don't we v

If rule-based highlighting of syntax is meaningfully helpful for reading code then how come nobody uses rule-based syntax highlighting of prose? Why don't we visually emphasize the verb in a sentence and deemphasize articles and prepositions, for example? In prose the author can *bold* or italicize text to emphasize ad-hoc, or make ## headings for scanning. Why can't we do such ad-hoc emphases in code?

theokrueger 1mo ago
one time i made a nlp-based syntax highlighter for english ebooks, and it was pretty interesting. in using it, i believe that it's a little handholdy and reduces expression when every word has some color based on it's part of speech. intentional application of this would be incredibly fun to read, if not incredibly tedious to write
- WorldMaker 1mo ago
  I saw a dyslexic/speed reading app that did something like this once. I don't know how useful that was in practice, but the theory of it was pretty compelling. Most sight reading is based on the overall shape of the word (rather than the component letters, we rarely actually read letter at a time [0]), and for different reasons word shape alone is still to slow for dyslexic and speed readers, so adding an extra channel of color can help speed up reading for both audiences of reader. [0] Which is why UPPERCASE TEXT is a reading speed bump for almost all readers because word shapes blur together into "just rectangles" more. Which is also why the "slow reveal" pattern in most visual novel genres is often very wrong for English text. (Most simply reveal character at a time which makes sense for CJK ideograms because one character is at least a full syllable if not also a full word. When the pattern was copied to English translations it probably should have been done word at a time rather than character at a time.)

2 ms·

If rule-based highlighting of syntax is meaningfully helpful for reading code then how come nobody uses rule-based syntax highlighting of prose? Why don't we v

by twitchard 1mo ago

theokrueger 1mo ago
one time i made a nlp-based syntax highlighter for english ebooks, and it was pretty interesting. in using it, i believe that it's a little handholdy and reduces expression when every word has some color based on it's part of speech. intentional application of this would be incredibly fun to read, if not incredibly tedious to write
- WorldMaker 1mo ago
  I saw a dyslexic/speed reading app that did something like this once. I don't know how useful that was in practice, but the theory of it was pretty compelling. Most sight reading is based on the overall shape of the word (rather than the component letters, we rarely actually read letter at a time [0]), and for different reasons word shape alone is still to slow for dyslexic and speed readers, so adding an extra channel of color can help speed up reading for both audiences of reader. [0] Which is why UPPERCASE TEXT is a reading speed bump for almost all readers because word shapes blur together into "just rectangles" more. Which is also why the "slow reveal" pattern in most visual novel genres is often very wrong for English text. (Most simply reveal character at a time which makes sense for CJK ideograms because one character is at least a full syllable if not also a full word. When the pattern was copied to English translations it probably should have been done word at a time rather than character at a time.)