1. Euphoria's uniqueness
- Posted by Derek Parnell <ddparnell at bigpond.com> Jul 03, 2001
- 349 views
> SR Wrote: > What is that something NEW that we are creating, exactly? What does > it do that the other languages don't? I agree that Euphoria doesn't present any really new concepts. Its how they are implemented that makes Euphoria a useful tool. Sequences are also present in Pick Basic, though they call them multi-valued fields and Pick's implementation limits them to 10 levels deep. Also the minimalist data type system is found in Pick too - everything is a string and numeric operations always involve automatic run-time conversions. As for platform independence, I suspect that REXX is a good benchmark to use. The one unique thing I can think of is the idea of limiting scope to an include file. I don't think any other language does this at the source code level, they usually do this at the object code level. Euphoria's include file is very similar to object modules being included by a link-editor. But still, the concept is not very new or significantly different from other languages. Euphoria makes using these concepts easier. It is a general purpose language, unlike Rebol which is custom built for Internet functionality. I really like Rebol (and Ruby) but not for everyday applications. However, I am not convinced yet that Euphoria is as good as it could be. RDS still needs to include a little more usability into the language for it to be really great. RDS is doing the improvements now. Not all at once and not as fast as I would like, but improvements are being planned. After version 2.3, I'm positive there will be a v2.4 etc... There is not much you couldn't do with Euphoria. It's just that the coder is doing a lot more work now that the interpreter could do for them instead. Does this make Euphoria a poor tool? Probably not, if in the long run it proves more economical than the alternatives. The jury is still out on that one. ----------- cheers, Derek Parnell Senior Design Engineer Global Technology Australasia Ltd dparnell at glotec.com.au --------------------- confidential information intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you are not the intended recipient of this message you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, distribution or reproduction of this message is prohibited. If you have received this message in error please notify the sender immediately. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender and may not necessarily reflect the views of Global Technology Australasia Limited.