[alan-crowe]

I wonder why they preferred ~= over =/= ?

I would sympathize with using =/= for "not equal" because it is ASCII art for the traditional mathematical notation of using an equal sign with a line through it. Though it might be better just to permit carefully selected unicode characters such as https://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/2260/index.htm

=/= is disappointing as art because it is too wide, but it has obvious mnemonic power.

Would you object to =/= as "arbitrary uncommon syntax" because it is poor art? Does its mnemonic power save it from the criticism of being "new for the sake of new"

[fanf2]

MATLAB also uses ~= but I am not certain that is where Lua got it from. (The paper on the history of Lua does not say...)