EQOTD - English Question of the Day - verbalized transition

[thecodeproject treacy co uk]

I'm the last person to ask about this sort of stuff and I'm probably missing something here but surly the answer is transform? e.g. "...the Foos and Bars transform to a new state."

modified on Thursday, December 31, 2009 8:46 AM

[Lost User]

Mark Wallace wrote:

Cute, but (as you'd expect from Chambers) wrong.

Not at all, Chambers is well known as a definitive reference second only to the OED.

Mark Wallace wrote:

Transition is also an intransitive verb.

Not in English it isn't.

[BillWoodruff]

Hi Scott, The word "transform" implies a change in structure : "A slime mold transforms into a fruiting body in response to subtle environmental cues." You could say : "Class Foo is transformed by sub-classing and over-riding the Bar method." Or : "We use inheritance to transform Class Foo into Class SonOfFoo." But, imho, that's language-overkill : all we really need to say is "SonOfFoo" inherits from 'Foo, and over-rides method 'Bar." To "change state" also often implies a structural change also : "H20 changes state from water to ice generally around 0 degrees C." But it would be perfectly acceptable, in modern technical writing, in some circumstances, say after you had listed a specific set of "named states" to write something like : "When the user presses <alt><control><b> the application changes to State X1; please examine the possible outcomes in State X1 in the above diagram." And common usage in programming technical books is to speak of "entering' and "leaving" "state," or being "in a state" : As in : "Before entering the 'foreach loop, we test to make sure the 'Foo collection is not in a null state." "If the site user has filled in all the required fields on the Form, and pressed, 'Submit, the site will enter the state of validating Form fields; however, if validation fails, the site will leave this state, and re-enter the state of displaying the form to the site user again." Note that with the last examples, we get where the distinction between "state" and "mode" is arguable. At one time "state machines," as a formalism for describing computer programs, were just the "bees' knees," but that was long ago. A "problem" with the use of the word "state" is that it has all these other "overtones" related to "status" and "static," and often refers to the current constellation of values of objects, or current settings of user interface widgets, etc. : as in : "Now we'll demonstrate the use of Serialization to maintain UI state in order to implement the 'Undo feature." best, Bill

"Many : not conversant with mathematical studies, imagine that because it [the Analytical Engine] is to give results in numerical notation, its processes must consequently be arithmetical, numerical, rather than algebraical and analytical. This is an error. The engine can arrange and combine numerical quantities as if they were letters or any other general symbols; and it fact it might bring out its results in algebraical notation, were provisions made accor

[IncredibleMouse]

best most, lol that's the best most engrish ever mostest ever. :)

[Stache]

That is correct, but transition is intransitive. So though the Foo may transition, we have no business transitioning the Foo.

[Mark_Wallace]

Richard MacCutchan wrote:

Chambers is well known as a definitive reference second only to the OED WiKipedia

Fixed that for you.

Richard MacCutchan wrote:

Mark Wallace wrote: Transition is also an intransitive verb. Not in English it isn't.

If you read check a real dictionary (OED, American Heritage, etc.), you'll find that it is. On-line references rarely cut the mustard; a dictionary is just too damned much work to create and keep up to date.

I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!

[Lost User]

Mark Wallace wrote:

If you read check a real dictionary (OED, American Heritage, etc.), you'll find that it is.

American Heritage could hardly be deemed a real dictionary when considering the English language.

[Gary R Wheeler]

'Transitioning the Foo' is only valid when you are using BizSpeak™[^].

Software Zen: delete this;
Fold With Us![^]

[Johann Gerell]

Too readable. ;)

-- Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time - Bertrand Russel

[Johann Gerell]

Perfect! I followed your advice almost to the point, but I thought transvestite sounded better, so I used it instead. Checked the doc in. Emailed it to the boss and the customers. Waiting for praise. What does that word mean, anyway? ;)

-- Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time - Bertrand Russel

[Johann Gerell]

BillWoodruff wrote:

try : "documentation that frequently uses the phrase "state transition"

Ahhh! That tastes much better! :)

-- Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time - Bertrand Russel

[Prune etna]

change

[Jazne]

transit

[JohannNutter]

It's 'Transition' - in English, you can always verb a noun.

[Steve Westbrook]

I thought about this for a long time before posting: What?

[Rick Shaub]

I agree that change is the right verb for describing a state, err, change. For example: The Foo changes to the Bar state.

[kjthorn]

Maybe metaphors of motion would help, e.g., objects can enter new states or be carried or moved to them. Or you could refer to states being changed or altered.

[James Lonero]

Does that mean that the corporate initials IBM (I've Been Moved) will change to IBT (I've Been Transitioned)?

[BillWoodruff]

JohannNutter wrote: It's 'Transition' - in English, you can always verb a noun. Hi Johann, Adding the suffix "ion" is a standard way, in English, to make a verb a noun. "Transition" is a noun. You might find this a good resource : [^] best, Bill

"Many : not conversant with mathematical studies, imagine that because it [the Analytical Engine] is to give results in numerical notation, its processes must consequently be arithmetical, numerical, rather than algebraical and analytical. This is an error. The engine can arrange and combine numerical quantities as if they were letters or any other general symbols; and it fact it might bring out its results in algebraical notation, were provisions made accordingly." Ada, Countess Lovelace, 1844

modified on Friday, January 1, 2010 12:22 AM

[BillWoodruff]

anzyne wrote: transit The problem with "transit" : 1. its major contemporary usage is as a noun : as in "Detroit's mass transit system ..." Even the form "in transit" as, for example, applied to airplane travellers, is adverbial. 2. its use as a verb is archaic, outmoded, and not appropriate in modern technical writing except in certain forms like : "now that you understand the fundamentals of lambda syntax, and expression trees, in C# .NET, the next chapter will help you make the transition to understanding and using Linq's powerful extension methods." best, Bill

"Many : not conversant with mathematical studies, imagine that because it [the Analytical Engine] is to give results in numerical notation, its processes must consequently be arithmetical, numerical, rather than algebraical and analytical. This is an error. The engine can arrange and combine numerical quantities as if they were letters or any other general symbols; and it fact it might bring out its results in algebraical notation, were provisions made accordingly." Ada, Countess Lovelace, 1844