On Sun, Apr 6, 2008 at 7:52 PM, Kelly Jones <kelly.terry.jones@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: > Many programming languages (including Perl, Ruby, and PHP) support hashes: > > $color['apple'] = 'red'; > $color['ruby'] = 'red'; > > $type['apple'] = 'fruit'; > $type['ruby'] = 'gem'; > > This quickly lets me find the color or type of a given item. > > In this sense, color() and type() are like mathematical functions. > > However, I can't easily find all items whose $color is 'red', nor all > items whose $type is 'fruit'. In other words, color() and type() > aren't full mathematical relations. > > Of course, I could create the inverse function as I go along: > > $inverse_color['red'] = ['apple', 'ruby']; # uglyish, assigning list to > value > > and there are many other ways to do this, but they all seem kludgey. > > Is there a clean way to add 'relation' support to Perl, Ruby, or PHP? > > Is there a language that handles mathematical relations > naturally/natively? > > I realize SQL does all this and more, but that seems like overkill for > something this simple? > > -- > We're just a Bunch Of Regular Guys, a collective group that's trying > to understand and assimilate technology. We feel that resistance to > new ideas and technology is unwise and ultimately futile. > > -- > PHP General Mailing List (http://www.php.net/) > To unsubscribe, visit: http://www.php.net/unsub.php > >
