[Edu-sig] Python as Application

[Arthur]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Chuck Allison [mailto:chuck at freshsources.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, October 26, 2005 2:05 AM
> To: Arthur
> Cc: edu-sig at python.org
> Subject: Re[2]: [Edu-sig] Python as Application
> 
> Hello Arthur,
> 
> Tuesday, October 25, 2005, 4:26:21 PM, you wrote:
> 
> A> We understand that all the functionality he will ever need from Excel
> is
> A> available for free in other spreadsheet software.
> 
> A> He apparently never will - unless I intercede.
> 
> Does it really matter where the software came from, especially if the
> open-source version is made to be a virtual copy of Excel (as Open
> Office is)? He's learning Good Stuff. Why muddy the waters with
> orthogonal political and business issues? What difference will this
> make to your son's software/programming experience? Especially at his
> age (I assume he's not in college by your description), why not let
> him explore with the tools he has.
> 
> (And please don't swear at me.)

Chuck,  

I am trying to be a good boy.

In replying to David's question about how important the interactive prompt
was to my learning experience, I edited out my blast at the educator who got
himself granted to maintain VPython.  For distributing it bundled in such a
way that - at least on Windows - there is a conscious decision to override
the expressed will of the author of IDLE (a Mr. Guido somethingorother), and
fuck with its configuration files (I cursed) in a way that good etiquette
dictates one does not fuck with someone else's configuration files (I cursed
again) - so as to obscure the existence of the silly interactive prompt.

I guess you provoked me enough to un-edit it out, and at least to get some
curses out of my system.

And what was Excel a virtual copy of?

I honestly don't feel our society survives a moratorium on matters of
principle - even in the interests of the advancement of technology.

Though there is good enough evidence that there is little appetite for
discussion of these things here, and I will try to accept the judgment that
one man's apples and apples may be other folks apples and oranges.

Art