Re: From the Java Specification. Why o why o why do they write this way?

From:

Lew <lew@nospam.lewscanon.com>

Newsgroups:

comp.lang.java.help

Date:

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 00:49:58 -0400

Message-ID:

<CeWdnfRGB_jqFo3bnZ2dnUVZ_t-mnZ2d@comcast.com>

Andrew Thompson via JavaKB.com wrote:

Reporter wrote:

17.4.4 Synchronization Order
Every execution has a synchronization order. A synchronization order
is a total order over all of the synchronization actions of an
execution.

It seems this message would have been better put as a
follow-up to your earlier one titled..
'Who are the illiterates that write this stuff?'

Patricia Shanahan gave a great followup on that thread. She pointed out that
the language of the JLS is specialized argot with extreme precision its
purpose. The OP needs to take the time to learn what it says; the JLS is an
unending source of insight into the Java language.

It's easy to slam what one doesn't understand, and understandable that opaque
prose might make one skeptical of the value therein. The JLS is worth the
effort, IMHO. In fact, the cited passages (17.4.4 et. al.) regarding
"happens-before" and synchronization order were what most clearly explained to
me how the Java memory model interacts with threads and synchronization.

Not everything worth reading is easy to read, and not everything hard to read
is worthless.

-- Lew