2008-06-11: When Syntax Matters

If you're a computer geek, it isn't uncommon to hear something like "XML is just S-expressions", only with a different syntax. Well, while it seems logical, we might as well argue that:

  1. Every data can be encoded as 1's or 0's.
  2. We can write any program using NAND gates.

Both of these claims are correct that no one will find it convenient to encode data as 1's and 0's or to design everything using NAND gates exclusively.

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