[Haskell-cafe] Re: Error message reform (was: Strange type error with associated type synonyms)

[Jeff Wheeler]

On Wed, 2009-05-27 at 23:59 -0400, John Dorsey wrote:


> There was one hang-up; it wasn't at all clear which referred to the term,
> and which referred to the context.  (Really both types are inferred.) This
> stopped bothering me when I decided it didn't matter which was which, and I
> could generally find the problem pretty quickly just knowing the location
> and the types involved.
> 
> Of course, I can see how the messages are probably much less useful to
> non-native speakers, and that's quite important.  Something along the lines
> of "inferred type <droozle> for term, but expected type <snidgit> in
> context".

As a native English speaker myself, I've also found it awkward because
both types are inferred, I suppose.

The alternate format you've suggested would make it much more clear, in
my opinion, and I strongly feel that the current version should be
replaced with yours.

Jeff Wheeler