Consistent Types

There's a problem with inconsistent downcalling, which I've been hankering after for a bit, and which C# supports using the "new" keyword.

The problem is that extension classes aren't really subtypes of extended classes anymore. They violate the Liskov Substitution Principle.

Interfaces for encapsulation don't have this problem.

(Though it'd be great if all languages had something like c#'s "override" keyword :).)

UPDATE: I was mistaken. Different methods are called on an object in different static "contexts". For example:

((ArtisticCowboy)joe).draw() runs one method, and
((Cowboy)joe).draw() runs another.

This is what C# does, but I don't know if it's wise.

Future Refactoring UI

Refactoring tools have a good case of programmer automorphism. These tools present silly lists of operations like "decompose conditional" and "encapsulate downcast."

Really, automatic refactoring means the computer automatically makes all appropriate changes to accompany your change. It's all about moving and renaming. The tools should get rid of their complicated interfaces, and just support a mode "don't let me introduce any errors."

Simple changes are easy to spot, but moves need to be done with Cut&Paste. For example, cutting from one place and pasting to another should fix up the pasted code to work in the new location. It should also fix up callers to the code at the original location so that they now call to the new location. The user shouldn't have to specify what type of code is moving, or what type of move it's making.

If this could be made fast enough, programmers might want to always work this way. They'd just have to get in the habit of defining before using, and deleting usages before deleting definitions.

Everyone is Like Me, and bad UI

User interfaces suck because programmers think users care about programs.

Users do not care about programs. They think, "Just do it," and, "Get out of my face." Programmers love their programs, so they think everyone else does too. For example, they even write programs that hassle users to make implementation decisions.

In general, every person thinks that everyone is just like himself. Worse, every person thinks that everyone is like himself right now. In the linked example, even the developers won't care about the implementation a year after they've coded.

There is a word for this, though it seems seldom used: automorphism