exercise 8.3: every other

[jgmbenoit]

In exercise 8.3, we read

A step size of 2 means every other character;(...).

As non native English reader, I get confuse: is every other an idiom that means every two ?
I would favour plain English.

[AllenDowney]

Yes "every other character" means take one, skip one, take one, skip one, etc. But I understand that this idiom might not be familiar to non-native speakers. An alternative is to say "every second character". Would that be easier to interpret? Or should I make it explicit, like "take one, skip one"? Thanks! Allen

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On Fri, Jul 22, 2022, at 5:56 PM, Jérôme Benoit wrote: In exercise 8.3, we read > A step size of 2 means every other character;(...). > As non native English reader, I get confuse: is `every other` an idiom that means `every two` ? I would favour plain English. — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#96>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AAOLP3KSOW3MHFLRVQT3TVLVVMKKJANCNFSM54M3UIHA>. You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[jgmbenoit]

"every second character" would be consistent with the spirit of the sentence, the (...) is in fact ``3 means every third, etc.''
(BTW, not sure of the semi-colon).
Best wishes,
Jerome

[OogieM]

Every second character is much harder for me to figure out. More explicit take one skipone seems more universal.

[jgmbenoit]

I agree with @OogieM to say that `` take one, skip one'' is better for a wider audience. A long this line, I suggest:

A step size of 2 means take one character, skip one character; 3 means take one character, skip 2 characters; etc.