Re: [LAU] Whysynth and MIDI channels

On Wed, May 30, 2007 at 09:02:33PM +0200, Nick Copeland wrote:

> >I want to be able to start an app and be sure it will not interfere
> >with what is already running. So it should not auto-whatever.
>
> Then as a capable user you should have started the whole connection toolkit
> without the defaults and just built your connections.

Indeed. And to enable that, the defaults that maybe convenient for
a novice should _never_ be coded into any app, let alone a system,
but be provided in the the default config file /etc/blabla.conf,
that along with all the other stuff that a novice user doesn't
know or care about gets installed for his/her convenience. This way
these defaults can at least be removed _permanently_ by those for
whom they are very inconvenient or even dangerous.

BTW, and not wanting to start a new dispute but just to offer
a philosofical reflection, the rationale for starting indices
at zero has nothing to do with how they are represented in a
computer.

Forget a moment the world of integers and let's think about e.g.
time. Time is a good example because the word is in many languages
(and therefore in many people's minds) used for two quite different
things. The first is an 'instant' like '3.16 o'clock', the second
is a 'duration' like 'for 3 hours and 16 minutes'. Or you could
think about 'position along a traject' and 'distance'.

Now everybody would agree that it is natural to measure 'instants'
or 'positions' on a scale that starts at zero. The clock shows
zero at midnight. The milestone at the starting point of your
journey shows zero. In fact you have little choice, because on a
linear scale 'zero' is the only point that doesn't depend on the
unit used. If time wouldn't start at zero on midnight, what should
it be - 1 hour, 1 minute, or 1 second ?? The unit is in fact
completely arbitrary.

The consequence of this is that we have a very convenient relation
between 'instants' and 'durations'. It it so convenient that it is
taken for granted by everyone, but it really is the consequence of
starting at zero: the numerical value of an 'instant' X is the same
as the numerical value of the 'duration' from the reference point
to X.

If you map this back to the world of integers, 'instants' become
ordinals and 'durations' become cardinals. If you now apply the
same relation you would use implicitly when dealing with physical
things, you want ordinal (x) = cardinal (x - 0). So the first
'thing' is named '0', because its distance from the starting point
is zero, and having the same value for position and distance is
quite natural.

** The only new element that allows you get away from this and
** start numbering things at '1' is that the unit is no longer
** physical and arbitrary, it is the abstract thing called '1'.

Without that, starting at 1 would be very confusing, and appear
to be against all logic.

-- 
FA
Follie! Follie! Delirio vano è questo !
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