Hey, them’s fightin’ words. Some of us actually like REXX. It’s the grandfather to Perl and Python both, and as such it deserves to be treated with a little respect. :)
Also, furrbear goes back far enough that he’s probably written code in REXX. (I came onto the scene a few years after it came out, but even then I stayed in the world of LISP machines for many years. I didn’t bother learning C++ until '89, nor C until 1993.)
You misunderstand me, sir! Note the icon on my original comment and recall that a flavor of REXX that was known as "AmigaREXX" was adopted as that platform's official scripting language. I wrote in AmigaREXX myself. ;) I rather like the way REXX handles variable data; strongly typebound languages give me a headache. And stem variables... w00t!
I only brought it up because I figured he might have used REXX at some point - and even if not, could appreciate the concept.
Python would certainly be easier to maintain over the long haul, given perl's unfortunate tendency to become write-only over time. That's my two cents, anyway.
… given [P]erl’s unfortunate tendency to become write–only over time.
It seems to me this is more a deficiency of the programmer than the programming language. I’ll certainly agree that with Perl a constant, conscious, dedicated effort must be given towards programming in the least surprising way possible. That said, I know a couple of people who do it. God bless them. :)
Is this a case where you will effectively be rewriting the script? If so, you have a great deal of freedom.
With which are you more comfortable?
With which language’s documentation tools are you more comfortable?
I try not to take sides in the Python versus Perl flamewars. Competently written Perl code is certainly readable and maintainable over the long haul, and I trust you to write your Perl code competently. I’ll only stand on the soapbox of Good Documentation and suggest you err on the side of giving the next hacker too much to read instead of too little. :)
Conway’s Law: “The only thing better than Perl is something that’s written well, even if it’s not in Perl.”
(Damien Conway of Perl fame told this to me at OSCON 2006, where we were both speaking. In the speaker’s lounge, some people assumed that putting a massive Python junkie (me) next to a massive Perl junkie (him) would lead to flamewar. Conway looked at my Python code, gave a good laugh, and spoke those words — which I have dubbed “Conway’s Law.” It’s the best answer to the Perl/Python holy wars I’ve ever heard.)
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
furrbear
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 09:02 am (UTC)*grin*duck*run*
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 01:48 pm (UTC)Hey, them’s fightin’ words. Some of us actually like REXX. It’s the grandfather to Perl and Python both, and as such it deserves to be treated with a little respect. :)
Also,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
furrbear goes back far enough that he’s probably written code in REXX. (I came onto the scene a few years after it came out, but even then I stayed in the world of LISP machines for many years. I didn’t bother learning C++ until '89, nor C until 1993.)
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 03:09 pm (UTC)I only brought it up because I figured he might have used REXX at some point - and even if not, could appreciate the concept.
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 05:31 pm (UTC)So noted; and I hope that my reproof was well–tempered enough that my eating crow won’t be too hazardous to my digestive health. :)
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 10:20 pm (UTC)Though at this juncture and given the intended audience, it would be a bit like writing a keyserver in OCaML (note: inside joke).
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 12:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 01:51 pm (UTC)It seems to me this is more a deficiency of the programmer than the programming language. I’ll certainly agree that with Perl a constant, conscious, dedicated effort must be given towards programming in the least surprising way possible. That said, I know a couple of people who do it. God bless them. :)
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 01:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 01:42 pm (UTC)I would suggest asking the following:
I try not to take sides in the Python versus Perl flamewars. Competently written Perl code is certainly readable and maintainable over the long haul, and I trust you to write your Perl code competently. I’ll only stand on the soapbox of Good Documentation and suggest you err on the side of giving the next hacker too much to read instead of too little. :)
Conway’s Law: “The only thing better than Perl is something that’s written well, even if it’s not in Perl.”
(Damien Conway of Perl fame told this to me at OSCON 2006, where we were both speaking. In the speaker’s lounge, some people assumed that putting a massive Python junkie (me) next to a massive Perl junkie (him) would lead to flamewar. Conway looked at my Python code, gave a good laugh, and spoke those words — which I have dubbed “Conway’s Law.” It’s the best answer to the Perl/Python holy wars I’ve ever heard.)
no subject
Date: 2009-04-26 03:07 pm (UTC)