Inconsistency in SurrealQL

[xuanswe]

Please see the examples below:

Example 1

LET $places = [
    {
        city: 'frankfurt'
    },
    {
        city: 'berlin'
    }
];

I see that $places.city; is similar to $places.map(|$item| $item.city);

[
	'frankfurt',
	'berlin'
]

Example 2

CREATE place:westbahnhof SET city = 'frankfurt';
CREATE place:sudbahnhof SET city = 'frankfurt';
CREATE place:ostbahnhof SET city = 'frankfurt';
CREATE place:berlinwall SET city = 'berlin';

LET $frankfurtPlaces = (SELECT VALUE id FROM place WHERE city = 'frankfurt');
CREATE town:frankfurt SET places = $frankfurtPlaces;

I see that SELECT *, places.city FROM town; is similar to SELECT *, places.map(|| {city: places.map(|$item| $item.city)}) FROM town;.

[
	{
		id: town:frankfurt,
		places: [
			{
				city: [
					'frankfurt',
					'frankfurt',
					'frankfurt'
				]
			},
			{
				city: [
					'frankfurt',
					'frankfurt',
					'frankfurt'
				]
			},
			{
				city: [
					'frankfurt',
					'frankfurt',
					'frankfurt'
				]
			}
		]
	}
]

Problem

If we replace with places.{city}, both examples work consistently. Nice!

However, the syntax places.city carries different meanings in the two examples above.
It could be $places.map(|$item| $item.city); in this case, or places.map(|| {city: places.map(|$item| $item.city)}) in another case.

I’m not here to criticize; Surreal DB is an impressive product.
However, I want to highlight that inconsistency in language design can lead to confusion, which is best avoided.
Moving forward, Surreal DB should strive for greater consistency in its syntax.

A strong example of well-designed language syntax is Kotlin.
In Kotlin, every syntax element maintains a consistent meaning,
ensuring that developers are never caught off guard when encountering familiar expressions.
Surreal DB could benefit from adopting this principle in its future design decisions.