On 08-10-2013, at 12:58 PM, Eliot Miranda <eliot.miranda at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> If it weren't for comments (and comments are /really/ important) we'd have implemented a parameterised formatted by now that auto-formatted code to the preferences of the reader and this would all be moot.  But without a good AI I don't see how to spot and preserve while reformatting multi-line comments, comments with diagrams in them, etc, etc, etc.
> -- 

One possible thing we could do with comments is make them act like comments to annotated Word/Pages documents. Select the section of code, hit MagicKey-comment, enter comment in balloon. Comments get to live in their own private formatting space, unaffected by whatever happens to the code layout. Possibly, they could be handled so that the code differ doesn't have to get confused by them, potentially simplifying that important job. 

once you have them separated, you can display them according to whatever algorithm you like. Inline them, have them float at the side, have them only pop-up when pointer is in the relevant region, list them at the end like footnotes, whatever. Or even invert the view - have the comments appear as the main text with the code off to the side.

tim
--
tim Rowledge; tim at rowledge.org; http://www.rowledge.org/tim
I haven't lost my mind; it's backed up on tape somewhere.