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Re: "You're not going to learn how to program in BASIC any more"

To: REALbasic NUG <realbasic-nug at lists dot realsoftware dot com>
Subject: Re: "You're not going to learn how to program in BASIC any more"
From: Alex Lindsay <alindsay at mac dot com>
Date: Fri, 30 Sep 2005 11:10:23 -0500
Delivered-to: realbasic-nug at lists dot realsoftware dot com
References: <20050930025150 dot DC16BDDAFBD at lists dot realsoftware dot com> <5FC23E3F-08E8-4469-9FD0-0F5B44575CE2 at designersdomain dot com> <610606f2b64b4d19a3aba74ee2be708b at mac dot com> <a06200704bf62fb6035ca at [10 dot 0 dot 1 dot 4]>
Interesting. I have done little with AppleScript and always assumed that was why I struggled a bit. But I could always read it! Never thought of a Read-Only language :)

Absolutely agree on strong typing. I absolutely want the compiler to tell me of possible issue where possible! Though I have been using C++ since 1988, I don't like implicit conversions and the cast operator. I would much prefer to have only explicit conversions and have cast operator work like RB, i.e. only convert if it has a conversion routine or is a base class. I also admire the features of Eiffel as far as language design, but never have had a change to use it professionally.

Thank you,

Alex Lindsay


On Sep 30, 2005, at 9:27 AM, Joseph J. Strout wrote:

At 8:16 AM -0500 9/30/05, Alex Lindsay wrote:

I have always thought that the more flexible and forgiving the syntax, the better the language is for learning. I also believe that flexible syntax is often a bane as the complexity of a project increases, especially when more than one developer works on the project.

I agree. The same goes for strong typing: it's good for serious software development, but mostly gets in the way for beginners or for quick hacks.

I have also thought that one of the more intuitive languages out there is AppleScript. Almost anyone reading AppleScript for the first time can understand it.

Well, yes, it's very readable, but very hard to write. Geoff describes it as a read-only language, and though I did a fair amount of Applescript in my day, I think this description is pretty apt.

Best,
- Joe

--
Joe Strout                          REAL Software, Inc.

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