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Here is another popular article about not using syntax highlighting. http://www.linusakesson.net/programming/syntaxhighlighting/ http://www.linusakesson.net/pr

by jlgreco 13y ago

Here is another popular article about not using syntax highlighting. http://www.linusakesson.net/programming/syntaxhighlighting/ http://www.linusakesson.net/programming/syntaxhighlighting/ I still think it is nutty.

vezzy-fnord 13y ago
I don't think it's that nutty. I use syntax highlighting, but I use very mellow colors that do not distract. The example given out in Akesson's article is a complete eyesore, however many text editors are like that and it's not that simple to change the color scheme in all of them. I believe syntax highlighting can also spoil you if that's all you're used to. It is a good exercise to write and maintain some code in raw format, occasionally. Personally I think it's enough just to highlight the reserved keywords and comments.
- jlgreco 13y ago
  Most of why I think it is nutty is because most of the reasons given to support disabling highlighting boil down to "I don't like this particular colorscheme". Which editors make it difficult to customize your colorscheme? All of the popular ones that I know of make it simple. Even nano makes it simple.
akkartik 13y ago
My synthesis of the acme/plan9 folks and the mainstream is that color can be useful in an environment, but the way it's currently used is not. Like this guy points out, there's no point highlighting language keywords; we're just doing it because it's easy to do so. Rather conserve the color and our attention for when it's truly needed. But the need for color seems too strong to fight with pure rationality. Perhaps it's enough that adding a little color to an environment we spend a significant amount of our lives in makes us happy. Since I have no taste, garishness doesn't bother me :) Here's an example of color being used in a relatively staid place -- and paying for itself: https://plus.google.com/110440139189906861022/posts/UqyUZdqPVbr https://plus.google.com/110440139189906861022/posts/UqyUZdqP... Hopefully these considerations will be subsumed by new research by Bret Victor or Rune Madsen (http://vimeo.com/61113159 http://vimeo.com/61113159). For now, here's my preferred syntax highlighting, with just a dash of color in most usual places, but two colors for comments: http://i.imgur.com/H1h7M.png http://i.imgur.com/H1h7M.png. (Why 2 comment colors? http://akkartik.name/post/2012-11-24-18-10-36-soc http://akkartik.name/post/2012-11-24-18-10-36-soc has the scoop.) Notice how the left pane is C++ and the right pane is my toy lisp, and the syntax kinda harmonizes.
- jlgreco 13y ago
  I have little objection to some people preferring fewer colors or having fewer things called out for coloring. What I don't understand is the leap from "This particular scheme is totally overdoing it" to "Let's discard the notion entirely" Merely adjusting the colors that you use and the things that you highlight seems like a clear winning solution.
- vorg 13y ago
  > there's no point highlighting language keywords; we're just doing it because it's easy to do so. Rather conserve the color and our attention for when it's truly needed. Yes, highlighting language keywords is like capitalizing or bolding the unstressed words in English: THERE IS A book ABOUT programming ON THE table.
- mixmastamyk 13y ago
  > there's no point highlighting language keywords; Disagree, it helps confirm you typed it correctly when you are trying to, and that you've named something incompatibly when you aren't. Thereby very likely preventing syntax/name errors before they happen.

by jlgreco 13y ago

vezzy-fnord 13y ago

I don't think it's that nutty. I use syntax highlighting, but I use very mellow colors that do not distract. The example given out in Akesson's article is a complete eyesore, however many text editors are like that and it's not that simple to change the color scheme in all of them. I believe syntax highlighting can also spoil you if that's all you're used to. It is a good exercise to write and maintain some code in raw format, occasionally. Personally I think it's enough just to highlight the reserved keywords and comments.

jlgreco 13y ago
Most of why I think it is nutty is because most of the reasons given to support disabling highlighting boil down to "I don't like this particular colorscheme". Which editors make it difficult to customize your colorscheme? All of the popular ones that I know of make it simple. Even nano makes it simple.

akkartik 13y ago

My synthesis of the acme/plan9 folks and the mainstream is that color can be useful in an environment, but the way it's currently used is not. Like this guy points out, there's no point highlighting language keywords; we're just doing it because it's easy to do so. Rather conserve the color and our attention for when it's truly needed. But the need for color seems too strong to fight with pure rationality. Perhaps it's enough that adding a little color to an environment we spend a significant amount of our lives in makes us happy. Since I have no taste, garishness doesn't bother me :) Here's an example of color being used in a relatively staid place -- and paying for itself: https://plus.google.com/110440139189906861022/posts/UqyUZdqPVbr https://plus.google.com/110440139189906861022/posts/UqyUZdqP... Hopefully these considerations will be subsumed by new research by Bret Victor or Rune Madsen (http://vimeo.com/61113159 http://vimeo.com/61113159). For now, here's my preferred syntax highlighting, with just a dash of color in most usual places, but two colors for comments: http://i.imgur.com/H1h7M.png http://i.imgur.com/H1h7M.png. (Why 2 comment colors? http://akkartik.name/post/2012-11-24-18-10-36-soc http://akkartik.name/post/2012-11-24-18-10-36-soc has the scoop.) Notice how the left pane is C++ and the right pane is my toy lisp, and the syntax kinda harmonizes.

jlgreco 13y ago
I have little objection to some people preferring fewer colors or having fewer things called out for coloring. What I don't understand is the leap from "This particular scheme is totally overdoing it" to "Let's discard the notion entirely" Merely adjusting the colors that you use and the things that you highlight seems like a clear winning solution.
vorg 13y ago
> there's no point highlighting language keywords; we're just doing it because it's easy to do so. Rather conserve the color and our attention for when it's truly needed. Yes, highlighting language keywords is like capitalizing or bolding the unstressed words in English: THERE IS A book ABOUT programming ON THE table.
mixmastamyk 13y ago
> there's no point highlighting language keywords; Disagree, it helps confirm you typed it correctly when you are trying to, and that you've named something incompatibly when you aren't. Thereby very likely preventing syntax/name errors before they happen.