Significant whitespace

[r0g]

David Robinow wrote:
> On Sun, Jan 3, 2010 at 10:42 PM, Roy Smith <roy at panix.com> wrote:
>> In article <mailman.386.1262576043.28905.python-list at python.org>,
>>  David Robinow <drobinow at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> On Sun, Jan 3, 2010 at 8:09 PM, Tim Roberts <timr at probo.com> wrote:
>>>> More than "not required", it was "not relevant".  This led to one of the
>>>> most infamous programming blunders in the early days of the space program,
>>>> when one programmer accidentially typed a period instead of a comma
>>>> resulting in the loss of a satellite:
>>> Interesting story. Did you make it up?
>> It's a fairly well known story.
>>
>> http://catless.ncl.ac.uk/Risks/5.64.html#subj4.2
>  Sure. But the question is, "Who made it up?"
> http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Fortran
> 
> Computer folklore has incorrectly attributed the loss of the Mariner 1
> space probe to a syntax error in a Fortran program. For example,
> "Recall the first American space probe to Venus, reportedly lost
> because Fortran cannot recognize a missing comma in a DO statement…"[



Wow you're totally right! It was a missing UNDERSCORE not a DOT being
typed instead of a COMMA! We've been lied to ALL ALONG! What kind of
sickos would do this? Let's find this Tim character, flay him alive and
then go crown you the KING OF EVERYTHING for rescuing us from that
deadly nugget of misinformation!

Honestly I might have believed those dot/comma LIES if it wasn't for
your noble selfless efforts to uncover the SHOCKING TRUTH. Imagine what
might have happened! The character in question being an UNDERSCORE
COMPLETELY CHANGES the meaning and point of the story. As for it being
LEFT OUT rather than TRANSPOSED, well, anyone can see how that TURNS THE
WHOLE STORY UPSIDE DOWN.

Of course there are the naysayers who might claim absolute accuracy is
no big deal in stories that are essentially parables but they do not
understand the HARM that can come from not remembering really tiny,
almost inconsequential details. For what it's worth I DO NOT consider
you a tiresome pedant and I think your taunting, patronising style is
completely appropriate and proportional to Tim's sickening crimes
against fact.

Roger.