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If you want to understand why this is bad just look at AppleScript, probably the closest thing I've ever seen to natural language, the only problem is that it's impossible to just figure something out if there isn't a tutorial, because there's no real convention you can make guesses based on.


AppleScript (and COBOL before it) was my first thought, too. Gruber calls the problem it exemplifies the "English-likeness monster" (https://daringfireball.net/2005/09/english-likeness_monster).


Ah, interesting! The difference between Metacode and something like AppleScript is that the artifact left over from using Metacode is still the rigorous programming language you're used to. If we retain a query log, you could even convert your natural language queries into code comments alongside your code to actually improve clarity.


You're going to get a lot of comments like these because when you say 'natural language' and 'programming' or 'code' in the same sentence people think coding directly in some 'natural'-like language. Also people often don't click on the actual links and many don't necessarily watch endlessly looping video clips when they do. A little bit of verbiage on the site might help that and head off the more obvious-but-inaccurate critiques. .




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