Splitting SYB from the base package in GHC 6.10

[Jules Bean]

José Pedro Magalhães wrote:
> Complex has a derived instance. In Data.Complex:
> 
>     data (RealFloat a) => Complex a
>       = !a :+ !a   
>     # if __GLASGOW_HASKELL__
>             deriving (Eq, Show, Read, Data)
>     # else
>             deriving (Eq, Show, Read)
>     # endif
> 
> Was there a problem with this?
> 

Yes, isn't it exactly the same problem as Ratio?

The derived instance 'leaks' the implementation detail of a complex 
number as a real and imaginary component. As part of a large structure I 
might want to apply some operation to all the 'Doubles' therein, but 
certainly not to the components of any Complex Doubles. You can imagine 
particular situations where I want to apply only to the real component, 
or something more subtle.

You can also imagine that an alternative implementation of Complexes in 
polar coordinates (with a suitable solution to the principle value 
problem) is supposed to be abstractly the same, but would gain a totally 
different Data instance.

Jules