Re: Python Emacs (was Re: The <word>.<word>.<word> rule)

[Jaap-Henk Hoepman <hoepman@cs.utwente.nl>]

On Fri, 19 May 2000 10:42:00 -0400 Stainless Steel Rat <ratinox@peorth.gweep.net> writes:
> * Jaap-Henk Hoepman <hoepman@cs.utwente.nl>  on Thu, 18 May 2000
> | Actually, C is a macro assembler which makes C++ ... an object oriented
> | macro assembler:-)
> 
> Very good.  Paste a star on your forehead. :)
> 

I feel radiant... :-)

> | My problem with LISP is that it is a functional programming language used
> | imperatively, which, at least to me, makes any reasonably complex lisp
> | function very hard to read...
> 
> The idea is that you recursively break a task up into successively smaller
> tasks, then you write functions to implement these little tasks.  Getting
> back to the natural language analogy, each of these simple, "microtask"
> functions is like a word.  Words are joined to form phrases, which are
> joined to form sentences, which are joined to form paragraphs, etc.

I know the basic idea of functional programming, thank you. I also know it's
good for certain programming tasks, and bad for others, and is actually not
used all that often... 

LISP is a very bad functional programming language, because
it allows you to use it imperatively: first do this, change the program state,
then do that, etc.... and the syntax is really horrible.

I have managed, over the years, to write simple LISP code for emacs-related
stuff. There have been many times I would have liked to do something more
complex, but was stopped by the `obnoxiousness' of LISP...

Jaap-Henk

-- 
Jaap-Henk Hoepman             | Come sail your ships around me
Dept. of Computer Science     | And burn these bridges down
University of Twente          |       Nick Cave - "Ship Song"
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