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Message-ID: <dc2907b70808130652u70a9b3e9r4784c506f360b5f8@mail.gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 13 Aug 2008 09:52:43 -0400
From: "Jean Krivine" <jean.krivine@gmail.com>
To: "circ ular" <circularfunc@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [Caml-list] Difference between "let rec" and just "let"?
Cc: caml-list@yquem.inria.fr
In-Reply-To: <d5f6b0140808130549m195f1247t7ecb00649d95d0bf@mail.gmail.com>
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References: <d5f6b0140808130549m195f1247t7ecb00649d95d0bf@mail.gmail.com>
X-Spam: no; 0.00; krivine:01 krivine:01 recursive:01 recursive:01 val:01 val:01 beginner's:01 ocaml:01 bug:01 beginners:01 wrote:01 rec:01 rec:01 caml-list:01 caml-list:01 

Each time you use let, you can also use let rec, but you have to use
the rec (for recursive) if you want to declare a recursive function as
in:
let rec f x = if x<0 then 0 else x * f(x-1)


On Wed, Aug 13, 2008 at 8:49 AM, circ ular <circularfunc@gmail.com> wrote:
> what is the difference between "let rec" and just "let"? what does rec
> stand for?
>
> are the following defintions exactly the same? at least they seem to
> give the same results...
>
> # let rec cube x = x*x*x;;
> val cube : int -> int = <fun>
> # cube 12;;
> - : int = 1728
>
> # let cubex x = x*x*x;;
> val cubex : int -> int = <fun>
> # cubex 12;;
> - : int = 1728
> #
>
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