i guess it would help for debugging of newer patches on older versions of pd. 


if you create [send x] and feed it [symbol x] [symbol y] symbol z], then it will always send to x in older versions of pd, so it might be harder to find the source of error.  however, if you just create [send], it will send to nowhere, so it will be easier to track down the point where message flow breaks down.



another related question, do receives also have this set function in pd 0.40 ?