[Python-Dev] Re: [Fwd: Discussion: Introducing new operators formatrix computation]

[Fredrik Lundh]

before this goes out of hand, let me just say that there might be good
reasons for adding more operators for Python, but your "why cannot I
have special syntax when everyone else got it" approach doesn't really
work:

> What does this mean?
>=20
> s =3D 1.2; g =3D 4.4; t =3D 6.
> a =3D s/2 + t/3 + 1/g
>=20
> Ah, that means a is the operation that globally substitute '2' =
followed by
> one or more space followed by ' t' with string '3 + 1'.  :-)

huh?  Python doesn't support the s/// syntax (you're thinking
about Perl or awk, right?)

...and:

> a\b        a.\b

huh?  Python doesn't have a backslash operator.

...and:

> Look it this way.  Text processing do have their special syntaxes.  A =
string
> is written as "string" instead of ['s','t','r','i','n','g'].

huh?  Python doesn't have a character type (C, C++)

> There is even the new sep.join(list).

huh?  that's a method call, not special syntax...

> If we had requested that new syntax for Fourier analysis or fractal
> generation that would be comparable to text processing or COM.

huh?  Python doesn't have special syntax for text processing (Perl,
Icon) or COM (C#, Visual Basic)

if you cannot get your Python facts right, why should I trust you
when you say that "Python needs this or that"?

</F>