[Haskell-cafe] Comments from OCaml Hacker Brian Hurt

[Anton van Straaten]

Andrew Coppin wrote:
> Duncan Coutts wrote:
>> [Monoids are] used quite a lot in Cabal. Package databases are monoids.
>> Configuration files are monoids. Command line flags and sets of command
>> line flags are monoids. Package build information is a monoid.
>>   
> 
> OK, well then my next question would be "in what way is defining 
> configuration files as a monoid superior to, uh, not defining them as a 
> monoid?" What does it allow you to do that you couldn't otherwise? I'm 
> not seeing any obvious advantage, but you presumably did this for a 
> reason...

It makes those things generically combinable.

Anton