Re: [office-formula] General comment on "if value is of type"

[Patrick Durusau <patrick@durusau.net>]

David,

David A. Wheeler wrote:
>  Patrick Durusau:
>   
>> "Summary: Return the absolute value of the complex number"
>>
>> That should read (leaving aside other issues):
>>
>> "Summary: Return the absolute value of *a* complex number"
>>     
> ...
>   
>> What is at issue is that we want to define the result for any value, not 
>> some value in particular, unless that is what we mean.
>>     
>
> But wait, that doesn't seem right.  We don't want to return
> the absolute value of some arbitrary complex number.
> We want to return the absolute value of the specific complex
> number that was passed in.  Thus, I think "the" is better.
>
>   
Sure we want the absolute value for some arbitrary complex number.

Think of it this way: The standard doesn't describe a particular use of 
the function, which is what you would need to have a number "passed in."

"Here I am passing the complex number Z to the  IMABS function and the 
result is...."

Rather, the standard is describing the IMABS function in the abstract, 
separate and apart from any particular number being passed to it.

Yes?

Hope you are having a great day!

Patrick

-- 
Patrick Durusau
patrick@durusau.net
Chair, V1 - US TAG to JTC 1/SC 34
Convener, JTC 1/SC 34/WG 3 (Topic Maps)
Editor, OpenDocument Format TC (OASIS), Project Editor ISO/IEC 26300
Co-Editor, ISO/IEC 13250-1, 13250-5 (Topic Maps)