Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it?

#21

Post by laumars » Mon, Feb 06, 2017, 4:44 PM UTC

ams6110 wrote: post #2

I honestly haven't heard of anyone using Perl for anything new. Sure there is a lot of legacy Perl 5 being used and maintained, but Perl 6? For a new project? I've never even seen it on a short list.

I promise you there are a lot of really high profile new projects being developed in Perl 5 still. A lot of companies tend not to advertise their use of Perl because it has a bad reputation (somewhat undeservingly in my opinion) or because of a tendency for some organisations to be secretive about their infrastructure. But I've worked on some pretty major projects, in Perl, over the last 5 years.

Re: Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it?

#22

Post by perlgeek » Mon, Feb 06, 2017, 4:45 PM UTC

alekratz wrote: post #8

follow-up: for a non-Perl person, who is incredibly interested in getting started with Perl 6, are there any good resources (code examples, blog posts exploring language concepts unique to Perl 6) that anyone would recommend?

I'm writing a book about Perl 6 right now, targeted at folks who already know some programming language(s), but not necessarily Perl 5: https://leanpub.com/perl6

There are 9 chapters out there already, which you get you started nicely. Feedback would be very welcome!

Re: Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it?

#23

Post by perlgeek » Mon, Feb 06, 2017, 4:49 PM UTC

So far I've used it for several small tools, including some that refactored code for other, larger projects. Grammars really make that pleasant.

Re: Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it?

#24

Post by marvy » Mon, Feb 06, 2017, 4:50 PM UTC

joosters wrote: post #3

ams6110 wrote: post #2

I honestly haven't heard of anyone using Perl for anything new. Sure there is a lot of legacy Perl 5 being used and maintained, but Perl 6? For a new project? I've never even seen it on a short list.

I use perl for new code all the time. It's not a trendy language, so it won't get much coverage on HN, but the language and libraries are great IMO. Also, perl 6 is effectively a completely different language from 'normal' perl (i.e. perl 5.x). The difference between the two is far far bigger than say python 2 -> 3. As a perl programmer, I see no obvious benefit from switching from perl 5 -> 6, it would be the same a…

As someone who knows neither version, I find this surprising. Surely, even if none of your code works, switching from Perl 5 to Perl 6 is much less of a "culture shock" than switching to, say, Ruby or Python?

Re: Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it?

#25

Post by throwaway7645 » Mon, Feb 06, 2017, 4:51 PM UTC

I'm actively following the project, but waiting for it to mature (speed, doc...etc) before using it.

Re: Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it?

#26

Post by throwaway7645 » Mon, Feb 06, 2017, 4:55 PM UTC

hyperpape wrote: post #12

I'm the rare person who never used Perl 5 but is trying to learn Perl 6. I haven't progressed beyond very simple scripts, but it's interesting. I especially am interested in the grammars, so I'll try to find a task where I'd get to explore them. I have no plans to try and ship software written in it.

I'm in a similar boat. Many of the features make for great analysis language.

Re: Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it?

#27

Post by throwaway7645 » Mon, Feb 06, 2017, 4:55 PM UTC

alekratz wrote: post #8

follow-up: for a non-Perl person, who is incredibly interested in getting started with Perl 6, are there any good resources (code examples, blog posts exploring language concepts unique to Perl 6) that anyone would recommend?

Several books are in the process of coming out.

Re: Ask HN: Perl 6: Do you use it, how do you like it, what do you do with it?

#28

Post by marvy » Mon, Feb 06, 2017, 5:04 PM UTC

bashcoder wrote: post #15

To a large degree, the ongoing utility of Perl 6 depends upon the continued vibrancy of the CPAN community. IMHO, CPAN is anything but vibrant by today's standards. While CPAN hosts a vast archive of nearly 35,000 modules[1], many are aging. Fewer than 800 modules are known to exist for Perl 6.[2] [1] http://www.modulecounts.com/ [2] https://modules.perl6.org/

I'm no Perl user, but surely 800 is pretty good for a one year old language? How many did Perl 5 have when it was one year old? (That's a trick question: CPAN was officially launched about year after Perl 5 came out; see here http://history.perl.org/PerlTimeline.html)