Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2024 May 30

= May 30 =

What Programming Language Is This? (1998)
I was watching TV the other day and they showed a computer screen with code on it. Normally, I rewind the program to see what language they are using. However, I came across a language I don't recognize. It looks like they are using # signs for comments, CIF to terminate IF blocks, == for testing equality, & and | for compound conditions, = for assignment and maybe line numbers for a couple lines. The TV show was from 1998. What programming language is this? A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 10:15, 30 May 2024 (UTC)


 * So the oddest part about the language appears to be that it uses indentation for structure, which is known as the off-side rule. That article has a list of potential candidates, but I had a look through and wasn't able to find what's in the image. ―Panamitsu (talk) 11:51, 30 May 2024 (UTC)
 * I've just noticed your remark about CIF, sorry. ―Panamitsu (talk) 11:56, 30 May 2024 (UTC)
 * The code snippet deals with astronomical coordinates and a "beam", which suggests to me that this has to do with radio astronomical data (nothing to do with the story I guess). Some of the statements look like Fortran. The slashes suggested something like ESO-MIDAS, but that doesn't have CIF. In fact, I haven't found anything using CIF, but maybe I've just hit the limits of my google foo. --Wrongfilter (talk) 12:24, 30 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Looks like a newer variant of FORTRAN. If the C of CIF is in the first column then it's a comment. Graeme Bartlett (talk) 12:47, 30 May 2024 (UTC)Screenshot of programming language 2.png

Here's a second screenshot. Unfortunately, there's some ghosting in the image but you can see that there are nested CIF's. A Quest For Knowledge (talk)
 * I think I've found it, or at least I've made a development. I've found a language called Cola ( COntrol LAnguage for use with Hermes) which was created(?) in 1994. Here appears to its source code. It is part of some project called the Groningen Image Processing System which "is a highly interactive software system for the reduction and display of astronomical data," which falls in line with 's comment. It has the CIF and also CFOR (my guess is the C stands for close), and generally looks similar, except I can't find anything about what symbols are used to make comments. ―Panamitsu (talk) 12:30, 31 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Excellent! It seems to me that cola uses exclamation marks for comments, but otherwise it is very close. This seems to be based on sheltran, which as far as I understand was a sort of pre-processor for Fortran 77 to allow for a more structured coding style. Makes you wonder how the makers of that TV series found that piece of code. --Wrongfilter (talk) 13:02, 31 May 2024 (UTC)

Help with text
Hi, i'm trying to create a Category for discussion request on Wikimedia Commons but i need to do some work on the proposal itself before i can publish it. Could anyone help me out? I'll much rather ask here than on Commons since the response time here is much faster.

The raw text to the CfD can be found on https://pastebin.com/cEaWgU6R Trade (talk) 17:10, 30 May 2024 (UTC) Basically the things i need to do is the following:

There are probably some way to automate it but as i said i have no clue how--Trade (talk) 17:19, 30 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Remove all duplicate entries
 * Remove all " ( C)" and everything in between them (including the space in front)
 * Start each entry with ":Category:" and end each entry with ""


 * I've created a subpage User:Trade/CfD Cristal on Wikimedia Commons – a much easier collaborative communication channel than PasteBin. I have fixed numerous issues (mainly lack of whitespace or the wrong case) that resulted in redlinks. CfD listings of multiple entries commonly use ; therefore I have not replaced   by.
 * The usual terminology is to merge categories (such as Category:RED ƎYE Pictures logos) into target categories (such as Category:RED ƎYE logos), which means all category members get reassigned to the target category. So instead of
 * (Move all the images into "Category:RED ƎYE logos")
 * you might want to use
 * Merge the following categories into Category:RED ƎYE logos:
 * I have left your wording unchanged, though. --Lambiam 08:53, 31 May 2024 (UTC)
 * Appreciated Trade (talk) 00:42, 1 June 2024 (UTC)