• WhatMeForget (11/11) Sep 24 2017 This is taken exactly from the traits documentation.
• rikki cattermole (15/34) Sep 24 2017 ```D
• H. S. Teoh (8/27) Sep 24 2017 You're not the only one. I stared at this same piece of documentation
• WhatMeWorry (2/11) Sep 25 2017 Thanks. I just created my first enhancement request, issue 17856.
• H. S. Teoh (5/19) Sep 25 2017 https://github.com/dlang/dlang.org/pull/1899
• Jonathan M Davis (13/24) Sep 25 2017 Think of the identifier as the name for the symbol and the symbol as wha...

WhatMeForget <kheaser gmail.com> writes:

This is taken exactly from the traits documentation.

------------------------------------------------

25 Traits

25.21 identifier

Takes one argument, a symbol. Returns the identifier for that 
symbol as a string literal.

------------------------------------------------


There are no examples. My naive brain keeps thinking that a 
symbol and an identifier are the same things.  Can someone give 
me good definitions of "symbol" and "identifier".   And maybe an 
example if it is not too much trouble.

rikki cattermole <rikki cattermole.co.nz> writes:

On 25/09/2017 6:28 AM, WhatMeForget wrote:
 
 This is taken exactly from the traits documentation.
 
 ------------------------------------------------
 
 25 Traits
 
 25.21 identifier
 
 Takes one argument, a symbol. Returns the identifier for that symbol as 
 a string literal.
 
 ------------------------------------------------
 
 
 There are no examples. My naive brain keeps thinking that a symbol and 
 an identifier are the same things.  Can someone give me good definitions 
 of "symbol" and "identifier".   And maybe an example if it is not too 
 much trouble.

```D
void main() {}

pragma(msg, __traits(identifier, main));
pragma(msg, __traits(identifier, Foo));
pragma(msg, __traits(identifier, Foo.func));

struct Foo {
	void func();	
}
```

```
main
Foo
func
```

"H. S. Teoh" <hsteoh quickfur.ath.cx> writes:

On Mon, Sep 25, 2017 at 05:28:13AM +0000, WhatMeForget via Digitalmars-d-learn
wrote:
 
 This is taken exactly from the traits documentation.
 
 ------------------------------------------------
 
 25 Traits
 
 25.21 identifier
 
 Takes one argument, a symbol. Returns the identifier for that symbol
 as a string literal.
 
 ------------------------------------------------
 
 
 There are no examples. My naive brain keeps thinking that a symbol and
 an identifier are the same things.  Can someone give me good
 definitions of "symbol" and "identifier".   And maybe an example if it
 is not too much trouble.

You're not the only one.  I stared at this same piece of documentation
for a long time before I figured out what it meant. This is another
example of poor documentation writing.  Please file a bug, and I'll see
if I can get around to making an example for it.


T

-- 
Notwithstanding the eloquent discontent that you have just respectfully
expressed at length against my verbal capabilities, I am afraid that I must
unfortunately bring it to your attention that I am, in fact, NOT verbose.

WhatMeWorry <kheaser gmail.com> writes:

On Monday, 25 September 2017 at 06:07:58 UTC, H. S. Teoh wrote:
 On Mon, Sep 25, 2017 at 05:28:13AM +0000, WhatMeForget via 
 Digitalmars-d-learn wrote:
 [...]

 You're not the only one.  I stared at this same piece of 
 documentation for a long time before I figured out what it 
 meant. This is another example of poor documentation writing.  
 Please file a bug, and I'll see if I can get around to making 
 an example for it.


 T

Thanks.  I just created my first enhancement request, issue 17856.

"H. S. Teoh" <hsteoh quickfur.ath.cx> writes:

On Mon, Sep 25, 2017 at 03:41:14PM +0000, WhatMeWorry via Digitalmars-d-learn
wrote:
 On Monday, 25 September 2017 at 06:07:58 UTC, H. S. Teoh wrote:
 On Mon, Sep 25, 2017 at 05:28:13AM +0000, WhatMeForget via
 Digitalmars-d-learn wrote:
 [...]

 
 You're not the only one.  I stared at this same piece of
 documentation for a long time before I figured out what it meant.
 This is another example of poor documentation writing.  Please file
 a bug, and I'll see if I can get around to making an example for it.
 
 
 T

 
 Thanks.  I just created my first enhancement request, issue 17856.

https://github.com/dlang/dlang.org/pull/1899


T

-- 
If creativity is stifled by rigid discipline, then it is not true creativity.

Jonathan M Davis <newsgroup.d jmdavisprog.com> writes:

On Monday, September 25, 2017 05:28:13 WhatMeForget via Digitalmars-d-learn 
wrote:
 This is taken exactly from the traits documentation.

 ------------------------------------------------

 25 Traits

 25.21 identifier

 Takes one argument, a symbol. Returns the identifier for that
 symbol as a string literal.

 ------------------------------------------------


 There are no examples. My naive brain keeps thinking that a
 symbol and an identifier are the same things.  Can someone give
 me good definitions of "symbol" and "identifier".   And maybe an
 example if it is not too much trouble.

Think of the identifier as the name for the symbol and the symbol as what
the compiler is actually operating on. Typically, a symbol either has a type
or is a type, whereas an identifier is just a name. For instance, when the
compiler sees an identifier in your code, it has to look it up to figure out
what its corresponding symbol is (and you'll get a compiler error if it
can't figure out which symbol you mean - be it because there is no such
symbol, the symbol hasn't been imported, the symbol is inaccessible, or
because there are multiple symbols that you could be refering to, and there
isn't enough information for it to know which you meant).

Regardless, there really should be more examples on that page.

- Jonathan M Davis