Subject: Re: Circular references

From: "Gordon Streeter" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 15 Sep 2000 00:28:30 -0500

From: "Richard A. O'Keefe" <[email-masked]>

> The best way to fix your problem is "Don't do that".
> Find another way to represent your information (there is *always*
> a better method than cyclic terms).

I'll certainly take this advice under consideration.  It is more than a
little amusing to me that, when I first discovered that the circular
references were the source of the problem, I looked for advice in your book,
and decided that the idea must have been beneath your mention.  Since I was
not only using circular references, but actually trying to assert them, I
could imagine your reaction.

I'm no Prolog expert, so I wouldn't think of arguing the point with you.
I'm using circular references to maintain navigability in both directions
between parent and child structures.  There may be a better to do that, but
I don't have the funds to redesign my application at this point.  Maybe in
the next release, if there is a next release.

In the mean time, I'm using another Prolog implementation.  It seems to be a
fine system, but being a former Quintus employee, and an admirer of
SWI-Prolog, it galls me to have to use this "other" system.

Thanks,

G