GNU Compiler Collection (GCC) Internals: User Experience Guidelines

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## 28 User Experience Guidelines

To borrow a slogan from Elm,

> Compilers should be assistants, not adversaries. A compiler should not just detect bugs, it should then help you understand why there is a bug. It should not berate you in a robot voice, it should give you specific hints that help you write better code. Ultimately, a compiler should make programming faster and more fun!

— Evan Czaplicki

This chapter provides guidelines on how to implement diagnostics and command-line options in ways that we hope achieve the above ideal.