[petsc-dev] New Year's renaming: DMComplex

[Matthew Knepley]

On Tue, Jan 1, 2013 at 8:36 AM, Karl Rupp <rupp at mcs.anl.gov> wrote:

> Hi,
>
>
>  Can DMComplex also be used with real numbers?   ;-)
>>
>> Yes, still the most commonly-asked question, and not likely to be fixed
>> by popularity. The new year sounds like a good excuse to fix this
>> confusion. Possible suggestions to fight the confusion:
>>
>> * DMPlex - short and pronounceable
>>
>
> I prefer this name over the two others.
>
>
>
>> * DMCC - "Cell Complex"
>>
>> * DMCW - from "CW Complex"
>>
>>
>> Matt, can we choose something and do the batch rename soon (before
>> petsc-3.4)? I'll make you an auto-generated deprecated compatibility
>> header if you want that.
>>
>> I'm sick of needlessly confusing users.
>>
>
> Other suggestions:
>
> * DMCellComplex - a bit lengthy, but expressive. Four additional letters
>
> * DMCellSpace - a CW complex is a class of spaces, but a user usually
> refers to a particular space. It's only two more letters than DMComplex.
>

Being a "CW Complex" is an attribute of a space the same way being a
"simplicial complex" is, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CW_complex, so
it does not directly name a class of spaces any more than the latter
designation.

   Matt


> Furthermore, is 'DM' sufficiently expressive? I know that there is a whole
> family of DM*-functionality, but if we change the name of something as
> fundamental as DMComplex, then one can also think about adjusting the
> prefix as well (if required)...
>
> Best regards and happy new year,
> Karli
>
-- 
What most experimenters take for granted before they begin their
experiments is infinitely more interesting than any results to which their
experiments lead.
-- Norbert Wiener
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