On Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:53:47 +0200, Igor Stasenko wrote:

> 2009/7/24 Klaus D. Witzel :
...
>> I was responding to a practical issue, not a conceptual one; try
>>
>>  Smalltalk at: #Smalltalk put: Smalltalk
>>
>> then you should see why that's not possible.
>>
> I don't see how this can be a barrier of any sort for a real hacker:
>
> (Smalltalk associationAt: #Smalltalk) becomeForward: (#Smalltalk ->  
> Smalltalk).
>
> Smalltalk at: #Smalltalk put: Smalltalk
>
> There are numerous ways how to get around this ;)

Have you considered rehash, .image save & load ? I've thought about  
replacing (Smalltalk associationAt: #Smalltalk)'s value many times and  
don't want to risk other people's .images just because of *any* silly  
mistake. That's why I'm interested in solutions to the practical side.

> Btw, this is another reason to not expose messages like
> #associationAt: to users.

Yes, one reason is: do not expose #pointersTo:, since then #associationAt:  
can be simulated. And just another one: do not expose #someObject or  
#nextObject ( & friends), since then #pointersTo: can be simulated.  
(cough) back to Smalltalk? :)

> Alas, associations is used by compiler. :(

Sure.

/Klaus