zz: Clarif. re inside/contents

[Ted Nelson <ted@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi--

The concept is simple, and exactly matches the names,
 *once you get it* ;-)
but as with so many things, getting it may not be
 instantaneous.

AHEM!  (Tapping pointer on lectern) =====

"Inside" is transitive-- (could it be otherwise?)--

d.inside =>
a b c d  ...

so in this example, b is inside a, c iis inside b, d
 is inside c, etc.

Now, the problem with only having that one dimension
 to represent containment is that in this model,
 each thing can only contain *one other* thing,
 like nesting Russian dolls.

So to put more than one thing inside A, we need
 some way of representing it, a contents list;
 and a simple way to do that is have it dangle from
 the first contained object.  A design choice is
 whether to have some title, or just the first item,
 at the top of the list; I choose to put the first item,
 since there might not even be a second.

The expected structures is: 
d.contents \/   d.inside =>  ("|" here means "no connection)
A a
   b
   c
 B d
   e
   f

where for some reason (probably visual convenience in
 some context), A *might* be connected to B, abd c to d,
 but those connections have no system-supported connection.

Best, T


At 10:42 PM 10/27/98 -0500, you wrote:
>
>> Good question.
>> 
>> Fonts make it diff. to read your pic,
>
>I do a lot of doodling.  You may need to view my message in a
>fixed-width font to make it work.  For your convenience I attach a GIF
>of my doodle.  (Is that really more convenient?)
>
>> Please ask more like this one.
>
>OK, here's one:
>
>> >        A - B - C      +--> +d.inside
>> >        |   |   |      |
>> >        X   B1  C1     v +d.contents
>
>Which cells are part of the contents of A?
>
>You said that X is not.  What about B?
>
>
>
____________________________________________________
Theodor Holm Nelson, Visiting Professor of Environmental Information
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