Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
1–10 of 25 posts
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#2A nice thing about Smalltalk and derived languages, like Pharo, is that they manage being written in themselves nearly down to metal, and that improves learnability a lot, as one can dive deep only knowing the language itself. I code mostly in Python, but sometimes is hard to take a deep dive there without smashing one's head against the C bedrock underneath, at least for somebody like me, that doesn't really know C.
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#3A nice thing about Smalltalk and derived languages, like Pharo, is that they manage being written in themselves nearly down to metal, and that improves learnability a lot, as one can dive deep only knowing the language itself. I code mostly in Python, but sometimes is hard to take a deep dive there without smashing one's head against the C bedrock underneath, at least for somebody like me, that doesn't really know C.
I can see why this is frustrating, especially to someone with no C exposure. But bear in mind that the C underpinnings are part of the reason why these languages are popular in the first place -- like Perl used to be before Python.
In a very real sense, the entire concept of an interpreted language in the modern sense is such an ugly kludge (much cleaner to "go all in" on the language, LISP machines being the notable predecessor) -- but do be aware of the tradeoff.
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#4A nice thing about Smalltalk and derived languages, like Pharo, is that they manage being written in themselves nearly down to metal, and that improves learnability a lot, as one can dive deep only knowing the language itself. I code mostly in Python, but sometimes is hard to take a deep dive there without smashing one's head against the C bedrock underneath, at least for somebody like me, that doesn't really know C.
I can see why this is frustrating, especially to someone with no C exposure. But bear in mind that the C underpinnings are part of the reason why these languages are popular in the first place -- like Perl used to be before Python. In a very real sense, the entire concept of an interpreted language in the modern sense is such an ugly kludge (much cleaner to "go all in" on the language, LISP machines being the notable…
I cannot make heads or tails of what this person is trying to say
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#5Earlier quoted context omitted.
I can see why this is frustrating, especially to someone with no C exposure. But bear in mind that the C underpinnings are part of the reason why these languages are popular in the first place -- like Perl used to be before Python. In a very real sense, the entire concept of an interpreted language in the modern sense is such an ugly kludge (much cleaner to "go all in" on the language, LISP machines being the notable…
I cannot make heads or tails of what this person is trying to say
You can ask them a question instead of insinuating that what they said did not make sense.
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#6Earlier quoted context omitted.
I can see why this is frustrating, especially to someone with no C exposure. But bear in mind that the C underpinnings are part of the reason why these languages are popular in the first place -- like Perl used to be before Python. In a very real sense, the entire concept of an interpreted language in the modern sense is such an ugly kludge (much cleaner to "go all in" on the language, LISP machines being the notable…
I cannot make heads or tails of what this person is trying to say
I read your username just after finishing reading this comment of yours.
I'm taking your question as genuine, but you provided some fun value with that hehehehehe
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#7A nice thing about Smalltalk and derived languages, like Pharo, is that they manage being written in themselves nearly down to metal, and that improves learnability a lot, as one can dive deep only knowing the language itself. I code mostly in Python, but sometimes is hard to take a deep dive there without smashing one's head against the C bedrock underneath, at least for somebody like me, that doesn't really know C.
Our brains adore consistency.
Smalltalk embraced that from the surface of its skin to the deeps of its soul:
From Dan Ingalls Design Principles Behind Smalltalk https://www.cs.virginia.edu/~evans/cs655/readings/smalltalk....
"Uniform Metaphor: A language should be designed around a powerful metaphor that can be uniformly applied in all areas."
"Personal Mastery: If a system is to serve the creative spirit, it must be entirely comprehensible to a single individual."
"Messages: Computing should be viewed as an intrinsic capability of objects that can be uniformly invoked by sending messages."
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#8Slang is challenging!
I was implementing a plugin for Pharo the other day and it really feels like metaprogramming in C.
I have pending in my to-do list making a blog post with a friendly how-to for making a HelloWorldPlugin so more people can play with it.
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#9Slang is challenging! I was implementing a plugin for Pharo the other day and it really feels like metaprogramming in C. I have pending in my to-do list making a blog post with a friendly how-to for making a HelloWorldPlugin so more people can play with it.
The main goal for Slang was to be able to use the Smalltalk debugger instead of something like gdb. Since you are essentially writing C but with a Smalltalk syntax the code itself is not any simpler, so it is all about the tools.
Re: Slang: The subset of Smalltalk that can translate to C or other languages (2019)
#10Earlier quoted context omitted.
I can see why this is frustrating, especially to someone with no C exposure. But bear in mind that the C underpinnings are part of the reason why these languages are popular in the first place -- like Perl used to be before Python. In a very real sense, the entire concept of an interpreted language in the modern sense is such an ugly kludge (much cleaner to "go all in" on the language, LISP machines being the notable…
I cannot make heads or tails of what this person is trying to say
My guess: C underpinning -> easy c bindings my guess. At least th, can easily write bottleneck parts in C. (why python is popular.)