]> > I'm just curious about something. I've been noticing that in many cases > (if not always) a pattern match with guard expressions in OCaml is > equivalent to a conditional statement. Not always strictly equivalent. Consider match x with hd::tl when hd <> 0 -> <expr1> | _ -> <expr2> Without "when", you'd need to duplicate <expr2>: match x with hd::tl -> if hd <> 0 then <expr1> else <expr2> | _ -> <expr2> > So, my question is, is there any objective reason to prefer the > pattern-match version over the conditional, or vice versa? Or is it just > a matter of coding style? It's just a question of style. Personally, I'd recommend using "when" in cases where "real" pattern-matching is involved, as in the example above, and cascades of "if...then...else..." in cases where it doesn't cause duplication of code. But you can opt for a different style. - Xavier Leroy ------------------- To unsubscribe, mail caml-list-request@inria.fr Archives: http://caml.inria.fr Bug reports: http://caml.inria.fr/bin/caml-bugs FAQ: http://caml.inria.fr/FAQ/ Beginner's list: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ocaml_beginners