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diff --git a/Misc/BLURB.LUTZ b/Misc/BLURB.LUTZ new file mode 100644 index 0000000..e508207 --- /dev/null +++ b/Misc/BLURB.LUTZ @@ -0,0 +1,122 @@ +Newsgroups: comp.lang.perl,comp.lang.tcl +From: lutz@xvt.com (Mark Lutz) +Subject: Python (was Re: Has anyone done a tk addition to perl?) +Organization: XVT Software Inc. +Date: Thu, 14 Oct 1993 17:10:37 GMT +X-Disclaimer: The views expressed in this message are those of an + individual at XVT Software Inc., and do not necessarily + reflect those of the company. + + +I've gotten a number of requests for information about Python, +since my post here earlier this week. Since this appears to be +of general interest, and since there's no python news group yet, +I'm posting a description here. I'm not the best authority on +the language, but here's my take on it. + +[TCL/Perl zealots: this is informational only; I'm not trying to +'convert' anybody, and don't have time for a language war :-) +There is a paper comparing TCL/Perl/Python/Emacs-Lisp, which is +referenced in the comp.lang.misc faq, I beleive.] + + +What is Python?... + +Python is a relatively new very-high-level language developed +in Amsterdam. Python is a simple, procedural language, with +features taken from ABC, Icon, Modula-3, and C/C++. + +It's central goal is to provide the best of both worlds: +the dynamic nature of scripting languages like Perl/TCL/REXX, +but also support for general programming found in the more +traditional languages like Icon, C, Modula,... + +As such, it can function as a scripting/extension language, +as a rapid prototyping language, and as a serious software +development language. Python is suitable for fast development +of large programs, but also does well at throw-away shell coding. + +Python resembles other scripting languages a number of ways: + - dynamic, interpretive, interactive nature + - no explicit compile or link steps needed + - no type declarations (it's dynamically typed) + - high-level operators ('in', concatenation, etc) + - automatic memory allocation/deallocation (no 'pointers') + - high level objects: lists, tuples, strings, associative arrays + - programs can construct and execute program code using strings + - very fast edit/compile/run cycle; no static linking + - well-defined interface to and from C functions and data + - well-defined ways to add C modules to the system and language + +Python's features that make it useful for serious programming: + - it's object-oriented; it has a simplified subset of + C++'s 'class' facility, made more useful by python's + dynamic typing; the language is object-oriented from + the ground up (rather than being an add-on, as in C++) + + - it supports modules (imported packages, as in Modula-3); + modules replace C's 'include' files and linking, and allow + for multiple-module systems, code sharing, etc.; + + - it has a good exception handling system (a 'try' statement, + and a 'raise' statement, with user-defined exceptions); + + - it's orthogonal; everything is a first-class object in the + language (functions, modules, classes, class instance methods...) + and can be assigned/passed and used generically; + + - it's fairly run-time secure; it does many run-time checks + like index-out-of-bounds, etc., that C usually doesn't; + + - it has general data structuring support; Python lists are + heterogeneous, variable length, nestable, support slicing, + concatenation, etc., and come into existance and are reclaimed + automatically; strings and dictionaries are similarly general; + + - it's got a symbolic debugger and profiler (written in python, + of course..), and an interactive command-line interface; + as in Lisp, you can enter code and test functions in isolation, + from the interactive command line (even linked C functions); + + - it has a large library of built-in modules; it has support + for sockets, regular expressions, posix bindings, etc. + + - it supports dynamic loading of C modules on many platforms; + + - it has a _readable_ syntax; python code looks like normal + programming languages; tcl and perl can be very unreadable + (IMHO; what was that joke about Perl looking the same after + rot13..); python's syntax is simple, and statement based; + + +Of course, Python isn't perfect, but it's a good compromise betweem +scripting languages and traditional ones, and so is widely applicable. +'Perfect' languages aren't always useful for real-world tasks (Prolog, +for example), and languages at either extreme are not useful in the other +domain (C is poor for shell coding and prototyping, and awk is useless +for large systems design; Python does both well). + +For example, I've used Python successfully for a 4K line expert system +shell project; it would have been at least twice as large in C, and would +have been very difficult in TCL or Perl. + +Python uses an indentation-based syntax which may seem unusual at first +to C coders, but after using it I have found it to be _very_ handy, since +there's less to type. [I now forget to type '}' in my C code, and am +busy calculating how much time I wasted typing all those '}', 'END', etc., +just to pander to 'brain-dead' C/Pascal compilers :-)]. + +Python's currently at release 0.9.9. It seems suprisingly stable. +The first 'official' 1.0 release is due out by the end of this year. +Python runs on most popular machines/systems (mac, dos, unix, etc.) +It's public domain and distributable, and can be had via ftp. The +distribution includes examples, tutorials, and documentation. The +latest ftp address I have (I got it on a cd-rom): + pub/python/* at ftp.cwi.nl + pub/? at wuarchive.wustl.edu (in america) + +There's a python mailing list maintained by the language's creator. +Mail 'python-list-request@cwi.nl' to get on it. + +Mark Lutz +lutz@xvt.com |