21 Nov
2011
21 Nov
'11
9:12 p.m.
On 21 Nov 2011 at 23:41, Mouse wrote:
While of course I don't have enough information to
do more than take
stabs in the dark, I'd tentatively guess that "Lieber Leser" is at
least partly a play on "Liber Abaci", falling into the "amusement"
category (and relatively harmless if the reader doesn't get it), while
the "guru beads" example may be an instance of the "analogy" case.
It was not at all uncommon for a German author preface an utterly
opaque text with "Dear Reader". Ignored, it does no harm and is a
nod to those in on the joke. Harmless, but able to draw a chuckle.
I've already expounded on the guru beads. For a ring of buffers, the
analogy is beautiful. I lack the erudition to include such
allusions in my own code. Mine tend to be on the level of Monty
Python, regrettably.
--Chuck