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> Which is fantastic; very useful backtrace; no notes. And why is this? Why can’t I shadow this function?

Not sure what the author means by "no notes". The transcript they posted does point to both the exact chapters in both the implementation and standard docs:

    ;   See also:
    ;     The SBCL Manual, Node "Package Locks"
    ;     The ANSI Standard, Section 11.1.2.1.2


The phrase "no notes" is slang from show business. After you're shown a script or a performance you may have "notes" to share indicating what you think is wrong with it. If you have "no notes" then you think it is perfect as-is and needs no changes.

The author here is not saying that the message has no notes. They are saying that they have "no notes" to offer the creators of the message on ways to improve it

See, for example: https://forum.wordreference.com/threads/no-notes.3042292/ https://hinative.com/en-US/questions/15238431 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NVQ8v1P4go


"no notes" is an idiom meaning "I have no suggestions for improvement"

The author was being sincere, rather than sarcastic as your initial parse suggests


I was not suggesting they were being sarcastic. I was suggesting they had not actually noticed that the error message actually answered their question: "Why can’t I shadow this function?".

This is the section of the standard the error message points at: http://www.lispworks.com/documentation/lw71/CLHS/Body/11_aba...

And this is the reasoning for why that section exists, linked to from that page: http://www.lispworks.com/documentation/lw71/CLHS/Issues/iss2...


Having also not spent that much quality time with the hyperspec, even if I've quite enjoyed dabbling in common lisp from time to time, it wouldn't've occurred to me that the spec would explain 'why' as well as 'what'.

"Underestimating the hyperspec" is a persistent mistake on my part sadly, although I at least seem to underestimate it less these days.


I read it the same way. I haven't heard this idiom either.




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