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Re:A Paper Algorithm Notation by argonaut on Monday January 02, 2017 @11:05PM (#13306608)
We were comparing the amount of time it takes to write a textbook versus the amount of time it takes to write all the papers the textbook cites (or relies on, I guess). So I don't think "hardness" and the fact that papers also cite other papers really changes this comparison.

I mean, a textbook might take years to write/edit (on and off) But it takes at least a month (on and off) to write/edit a paper.

Re:A Paper Algorithm Notation by taeric on Tuesday January 03, 2017 @12:28PM (#13310881)
But you don't think this is a learnable thing? Doing a paper, you already have to write code. Just structure it differently.

As it is, the code is often neglected. And rarely shared. Both bad facets.

And making a full text book that is executable is what I was comparing. That entire book is a program. I'd imagine that was much harder than the typical paper. Many of which are surveys and gloss over deficiency of the supporting code. (Again, I still concede the black swan nature of that book.)