[IronPython] To Compile or Not to compile, that's the question

[Joe Mason]

On Sun, Apr 17, 2005 at 11:49:31AM +0100, Innes MacKenzie wrote:
> On 4/17/05, Joe Mason <joe at notcharles.ca> wrote:
> > On Sun, Apr 17, 2005 at 10:55:08AM +0100, Innes MacKenzie wrote:
> > > On 4/17/05, Swaroop C H <swaroopch at gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > "ipc" is just too cryptic.
> > >
> > > What about 'dir', 'cd', 'csc'?
> > 
> > The first two are historical, and it's too late to change them.  The
> > third is just stupid.
> 
> So they ought to be ListDirectoryContents, ChangeDirectory, and
> CSharpCompiler. Hrmm.

I like "ldir", "chdir" and "csharp", myself, but the point is that having
a tradition of cryptic names is no reason to be cryptic for the sake of
it.  I haven't seen any argument for "ipc" except, "I will be typing it
a lot so it has to be less than 4 letters."

> > What OS are you talking about?  On Linux it works everywhere,
> > even searching $PATH.
> 
> Point made.

I wasn't trying to say, "Linux is better, hurr hurr!"  I was trying to
figure out if you were talking about Linux and just incorrect, or
talking about Windows, in which case I don't see why tab completion
matters.  Because...

> >On Windows, why does it matter?  Don't you just
> > associate .py with the executable and doubleclick it?
> 
> Yes, I have .cs associated with csc so I can compile my C# projects
> simply by doubleclicking!
> (just kidding)

I'm honestly trying to figure out why you intend to be typing the name
of a Python to .NET compiler often.  Even on Linux, where I use the
command line for everything, 90% of the time the compiler is invoked by
a Makefile so I only have to type its name once.  On Windows I was under
the impression that the compiler is always invoked by an IDE so you have
to type it's name even less often.  So - are you telling me you actually
compile C# projects by opening a window and typing "csc
somefilename.cs"?  If so, why?

When I talked about double-clicking .py files, I was confused and
thought we were still talking about the interpreter name, where a short
name is slightly more important.  But still, TAB-completion on Linux and
file association on Windows takes most of the burden off.

Joe