UTF-8 Unicode operators vs digraphs

[H. S. Teoh]

On Wednesday, 12 August 2026 at 02:12:31 UTC, user1234 wrote:
> On Tuesday, 11 August 2026 at 17:34:00 UTC, Dlighted wrote:
>> [...]
>> I think especially digraphs like >= <= != are a relict of the 
>> past.
>> They are stand-ins for ≥ ≤ ≠ just like C has for many other 
>> now common symbols. I'm supposed to do mental gymnastics and 
>> visually overlap the symbols to see the actual symbol.
>
> This part of the problem is solved if you use a programming 
> font with ligatures (FiraCode, JetBrainsMono, etc.).

Now *this* is what I call the "Walter mode of thinking". I.e., 
solving a problem with minimal effort instead of over-engineering 
a complex solution that introduces more issues than it solves.

Proposed solution: add digraphs/trigraphs to the language.
Cost: extensive changes to the parser, language spec, testsuite, 
and potentially affecting existing code unintentionally. 
Significant effort.

The "Walter-style" solution: just install a font with ligatures.
Cost: download a couple of font files.  No code changes required, 
zero code breakage.  Zero effort.

I approve of the second option. ;-)