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A number of times now I've posted challenges where the physical layout of the code is one of the integral components:

Write a Rectangular Program that Outputs the Number of Times it was Rotated
Make a code square with your favorite word
Program your favorite phrase
Code that runs the Game of Life on itself

(There are surely others not by me but I can't think of any offhand.)

I'm just wondering, is there a word or phrase used to denote these type of challenges, either on this website or in the world of programming puzzles at large?

To me they represent novel problems with very creative solutions, worthy of a descriptor (though I'm not asking for a tag).

Edit by Martin Büttner: I've added the existing suggestion as individual posts. Please vote on your preference, post arguments for or against each suggestion in comments or add your suggestions. Also, please feel free to add suggested Tag Wiki excerpts to each post, so we can figure out more clearly the implications of each name.

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    \$\begingroup\$ There's a source-art tag with a single question, but I don't think the word "art" really fits the requirements of your contests there, so I'd totally be up for coming up with a new word for it. restricted-source also doesn't really get to the heart of it, I think. \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 9, 2014 at 18:38
  • \$\begingroup\$ Maybe [source-design] or [source-layout] or even [source-craft] might work better for yours? And it could also include that old question. I'd like to hear other people's suggestions though, as I'm not too convinced of these myself. \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 9, 2014 at 18:57
  • 1
    \$\begingroup\$ Maybe [structured-source]? \$\endgroup\$
    – Calvin's Hobbies
    Aug 9, 2014 at 19:22
  • 3
    \$\begingroup\$ I like [source-layout]. \$\endgroup\$
    – xnor
    Aug 10, 2014 at 17:02
  • \$\begingroup\$ @MartinBüttner [artistic-source]? [arranged-source]? [formatted-source]? [source-formatting]? \$\endgroup\$
    – user16402
    Aug 11, 2014 at 11:24
  • 4
    \$\begingroup\$ Although it's not terribly descriptive, my favourite is [source-craft]. The others say what they mean, but at first glance could be read as valid programming terms, rather than a fun extra challenge. Source craft isn't that much less likely to be instantly understood, and has that "click me and find out" curiosity inducing sound. \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 11, 2014 at 13:27
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    \$\begingroup\$ Also fits well into fun sentences: "What source-craft is this??" \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 11, 2014 at 13:28
  • \$\begingroup\$ I have added all the suggestions as posts with the following exceptions: [source-design] because it doesn't really tell you anything, "design" is just to vague. [artistic-source] because it's no different from the existing [source-art]. [formatted-source] because it's no different from [source-formatting] where the latter is more likely to show up in auto-completion. Feel free to add those anyway if you think they have merit! \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 11, 2014 at 14:01
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    \$\begingroup\$ @githubphagocyte Then maybe we should call it [sourcery] instead. ;) \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:00
  • \$\begingroup\$ @MartinBüttner add it as an answer so we can see the votes! \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:01
  • 1
    \$\begingroup\$ IMO source-layout is clearest. I think source-craft is a little vague. Voting accordingly. I like tiled-source. \$\endgroup\$
    – Digital Trauma
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:08
  • \$\begingroup\$ I think this is pretty much decided. Feel free to accept [source-layout] and create the tag yourself in hopes of getting a Taxonomist badge for it some day. ;) (You created the genre after all.) \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 18, 2014 at 10:02
  • \$\begingroup\$ @MartinBüttner Added tag. Feel free to edit tag wiki (it maybe could use an example). \$\endgroup\$
    – Calvin's Hobbies
    Aug 18, 2014 at 13:23
  • \$\begingroup\$ Well so much for "decided". But [source-layout] is less disputed than [sourcery]. I don't think tags can be renamed easily, so you might want to edit the post to say that voting is over since changing the decision is impractical. \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 19, 2014 at 13:23
  • \$\begingroup\$ @MartinBüttner I'm interested to see if sourcery pulls far ahead. Can't we make a synonym if it's apparent people prefer sourcery? (Not totally sure how tag synonyms work.) \$\endgroup\$
    – Calvin's Hobbies
    Aug 19, 2014 at 15:29

13 Answers 13

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We should create a new tag.

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    \$\begingroup\$ I think this sounds more like a Code Review term than a Code Golf term. \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:18
  • 3
    \$\begingroup\$ It sounds like a legitimate programming term, rather than a twisted golfing term \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:18
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    \$\begingroup\$ @githubphagocyte although I agree with you, this one describes best the intended meaning of the tag. In many languages layout has no effect on what code does. In legitimate coding source layout is a matter of clarity and convention, but this is largely irrelevant in programming puzzles, confusion should not arise. Source-craft is more catchy, but (per Peter Taylor's comment) less specific. \$\endgroup\$
    – Level River St
    Aug 12, 2014 at 0:17
  • \$\begingroup\$ @steveverrill I think source-layout is indeed most accurate. I don't think confusion will arise - it just doesn't sound as fun. Clarity is more important than fun though. If we have clear tags we can work on making fun questions that people can actually find... \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 12, 2014 at 0:20
  • \$\begingroup\$ +1 from me (can't vote) \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 12, 2014 at 7:53
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    \$\begingroup\$ To me it's still too vague. I agree with @githubphagocyte that clarity should be the goal, but [source-layout] doesn't scream clarity. It seems like a tag you'd use when asking about whether tabs or spaces are best, or whether curly brackets should appear on the same line as the method definition or not (questions obviously not for PPCG). I would suggest something with no ambiguity like [physically-restricted-source] or [physical-source-constraints] if they aren't too verbose. \$\endgroup\$
    – Calvin's Hobbies
    Aug 13, 2014 at 9:00
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    \$\begingroup\$ @Calvin'sHobbies They are both too long. Also I think the point of your challenges isn't necessarily that the source's form is restricted but rather that it's layout/shape carries meaning. I suppose it would be enough if we had a concise, memorable tag name and a little more clarification in the tag wiki excerpt. \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 13, 2014 at 9:26
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    \$\begingroup\$ If we can't think of something that sums it up briefly, maybe we should go with something non-descriptive like [sourcery] so people have to click on the tag and read the description. That would be better than something ambiguous where different people will use it for different things. \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 13, 2014 at 13:16
  • \$\begingroup\$ Or [code-layout] \$\endgroup\$
    – Doorknob
    Aug 15, 2014 at 1:35
14
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We should create a new tag.

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3
  • \$\begingroup\$ +1 from me (can't vote) \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:03
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    \$\begingroup\$ This one HAS to win \$\endgroup\$
    – William Barbosa
    Aug 12, 2014 at 1:21
  • 4
    \$\begingroup\$ This one has the advantage of not giving the wrong impression, since it gives no impression at all. This means people will have to read the description so there will be less misuse for unrelated things. \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 13, 2014 at 13:19
11
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We should create a new tag.

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3
  • \$\begingroup\$ +1 from me (can't vote) \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 11, 2014 at 13:54
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    \$\begingroup\$ All PPCG challenges are about crafting source, so this doesn't convey any useful information. \$\endgroup\$
    – Peter Taylor
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:50
  • 1
    \$\begingroup\$ I love this one, and will support it if it gets the most votes. However, I do agree that this doesn't tell someone new to the site (or even new to the tag) anything about what it is supposed to mean. Tags should be accessible to newcomers and intuitive to use so we don't have to keep correcting them... For this reason I would change my vote to source-layout if I could. \$\endgroup\$
    – trichoplax is on Codidact now
    Aug 12, 2014 at 0:23
5
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We should create a new tag.

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1
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We should create a new tag. (Credit: professorfish)

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0
\$\begingroup\$

We should create a new tag. (Credit: professorfish)

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1
  • \$\begingroup\$ -1 from me (can't vote) \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 11, 2014 at 13:58
0
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We should create a new tag.

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-1
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We should create a new tag. (Credit: Calvin's Hobbies)

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    \$\begingroup\$ Meh. [source-craft] is a little vague but I do like it better. \$\endgroup\$
    – Calvin's Hobbies
    Aug 11, 2014 at 13:56
-3
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We should just use the existing tag.

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2
  • \$\begingroup\$ -1 from me (can't vote) \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 11, 2014 at 13:52
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    \$\begingroup\$ How has that tag not been auto-deleted? It's only on one question, which is more than 6 months old. \$\endgroup\$
    – Peter Taylor
    Aug 11, 2014 at 14:03
-3
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We should create a new tag.

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-4
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We should create a or tag.

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    \$\begingroup\$ I find that a bit too specific. E.g. I don't think it fits Calvin's latest challenge in that category. \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:22
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    \$\begingroup\$ @MartinBüttner Perhaps a calvins-hobbies tag ;-) \$\endgroup\$
    – Digital Trauma
    Aug 11, 2014 at 16:41
-4
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I'll go on a case-by-case basis for this.

  1. Write a Rectangular Program that Outputs the Number of Times it was Rotated - This should be tagged as . It counts minimum, with the added restriction of being a rectangle.

  2. Make a code square with your favorite word - This should be tagged as . It counts the minimum area, with the added restriction of being a square.

  3. Program your favorite phrase - This should be tagged as . It only counts characters.

  4. Code that runs the Game of Life on itself - This should remain as . It counts minimum characters, but entries have to be in a specific format, and they are supposed to implement the Game of Life on the Game of Life itself. The rules themselves are a little confusing, though.

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2
  • \$\begingroup\$ I'm not sure what your point is. Most of my questions are already tagged in this way (except restricted-source involves restricting characters so it doesn't apply to the first one). \$\endgroup\$
    – Calvin's Hobbies
    Aug 15, 2014 at 3:37
  • \$\begingroup\$ Okay. My point is that there shouldn't be a specific tag. The tag wiki reads: Imposes a restriction on the source code used to solve the challenge, for example, having no numbers in the source code. (emphasis mine). The emphasis points it as an example, not the rule. Also, the first part, the rule, is that it imposes a restriction on the source code used to solve the challenge, not stating what restriction. \$\endgroup\$
    – Claudia
    Aug 15, 2014 at 4:21
-6
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There is no need for such a tag.

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1
  • \$\begingroup\$ -1 from me (can't vote) \$\endgroup\$
    – Martin Ender
    Aug 11, 2014 at 14:03

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