Re: doc: Fix description of how the default user name is chosen

On Tue, Jul 5, 2022 at 08:20:25PM -0400, Tom Lane wrote:
> "David G. Johnston" <david(dot)g(dot)johnston(at)gmail(dot)com> writes:
> > In passing, the authentication error examples use the phrase
> > "database user name" in a couple of locations. The word
> > database in both cases is both unusual and unnecessary for
> > understanding. The reference to user name means the one in/for the
> > database unless otherwise specified.
>
> I'm not convinced that just saying "user name" is an improvement.
> The thing that we are trying to clarify in much of this section
> is the relationship between your operating-system-assigned user
> name and your database-cluster-assigned user name. So just saying
> "user name" adds an undesirable element of ambiguity.
>
> Maybe we could change "database user name" to "Postgres user name"?
>
> - if you do not specify a database name, it defaults to the database
> - user name, which might or might not be the right thing.
> + if the database name shown matches the user name you are connecting
> + as it is not by accident: the default database name is the
> + user name.
>
> This does absolutely not seem like an improvement.
>
> Since the database server uses the same default, you will not have
> to specify the port in most cases. The default user name is your
> - operating-system user name, as is the default database name.
> + operating-system user name. The default database name is the resolved user name.
>
> I agree this phrasing needs some work, but "resolved" doesn't seem
> helpful, since it's not defined here or nearby. Maybe "The default
> database name is the specified (or defaulted) user name." ?

I am not seeing much improvement in the proposed patch either. I wonder
if we should be calling this the "session" or "connection" user name.
When the docs say "if you do not specify a database name, it defaults to
the database user name", there is so much "database in there that the
meaing is unclear, and in this context, the user name is a property of
the connection or session, not of the database.

--
Bruce Momjian <bruce(at)momjian(dot)us> https://momjian.us
EDB https://enterprisedb.com

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