Re: senseless warning in octave-3.6.2

[Przemek Klosowski]

On 07/03/2012 11:14 AM, Sergei Steshenko wrote:

> So, vector differentiation depending on row/column property can _definitely_ be 
> abandoned - as the above example shows.
>
> Instead Octave developers in their "infinite wisdom" introduce outlandish
>
> row_vec OP col_vec -> matrix
>
> behavior and even make it default.

There are three possible behaviors:

- inner product:        vector OP vector -> scalar
- element-by-element    vector OP vector -> vector
- outer product         vector OP vector' -> matrix

Every one of them is useful in some circumstances. Matlab language 
didn't really provide outer product, and broadcast fixes that, so what's 
not to like? Just about the only criticism I'd accept is that it's 
easier to make mistakes by inadvertently triggering broadcast 
operations, but since you can turn it off if you know you are not 
intending to use it, there's no harm.

On the other hand, many calculations can be expressed much more simply 
with the broadcast primitive.

To step back a little, this discussion reminds me of the phrase "Who 
moved my cheese !?". There is a short and sweet book by that title, 
about how to learn to embrace change in our fast-paced world:
I
http://lifetofullest.com/who-moved-my-cheese/

Whenever I feel buffeted by unexpected change, like Sergei  in this 
case, I cheer myself up by remembering this idiom.