Re: [Caml-list] Why don't you use batteries?

["Hezekiah M. Carty" <hcarty@atmos.umd.edu>]

(I do not want to derail this thread, just make a small clarification below)

On Thu, Sep 3, 2009 at 11:49 AM, Jake Donham<jake@donham.org> wrote:
> On Thu, Sep 3, 2009 at 6:05 AM, Edgar Friendly <thelema314@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> 8) Other (please explain)
>
> Please take this with the caveat that I have little experience with
> Batteries, but my impression (from following batteries-devel) is that it
> changes OCaml significantly with Camlp4 extensions, and that it is not
> possible to use Batteries without the language changes. If I am wrong on
> these points I would be glad to know it.

This is, I think, a common and unfortunate misunderstanding with
Batteries.  In its current state (and likely in all future
iterations), camlp4 extensions/syntax changes are _not_ required to
use Batteries with your OCaml code.  If you simply link with Batteries
(ex. "-package batteries" using ocamlfind) then there will be no
changes to the syntax.

There are simple mechanisms to make use of the syntax extensions
provided by Batteries, but they are not required for Batteries to work

> I think it is important for adoption of any new thing to give people a
> low-cost way to get started, and an incremental path towards using it fully
> and depending upon it. My impression is that with Batteries you must take or
> leave the whole thing.
>
> A full-featured de facto standard library for OCaml is a great idea, but it
> must be a *library*; you must be able to use only the parts you want to use.

The easiest way to use Batteries is to take or leave the whole thing,
but it is not the only way.  Hopefully some more documentation,
particularly in the form of tutorials for folks new to OCaml as well
as Batteries, will help clarify what Batteries _always_ provides and
what it _can_ provide when desired.

Hope this helps,

Hez

-- 
Hezekiah M. Carty
Graduate Research Assistant
University of Maryland
Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science