Why use Perl when we've got Python?!

[John Stevens]

On 14 Aug 1999 02:39:10 GMT, Sam Holden <sholden at pgrad.cs.usyd.edu.au> wrote:
>On 13 Aug 1999 20:05:12 -0700,
>	John W. Stevens <jstevens at basho.fc.hp.com> wrote:
><snip>
>>
>>Thanks for the two missing magic characters (@$, and =>).  I always
>>have to look them up.
>
>Learn some perl then. @ is pretty fundamental. $ is pretty fundamental.
>What happens when you tell a scalr to be an array is pretty fundamental.

Oh, I *KNOW* the semantic.  I just can't remember the syntax.

As for calling the conversion of a scalar to an array "pretty
fundamental". . . can you say "Extreme Exageration"?

Tom tells me that Perl doesn't exclude non-computer scientists,
then you guys start throwing around references to references. . .

:-)

>Only if you don't know perl.

No, it is confusing to the average programmer.  If it isn't
confusing, to you, then you've spent a *LOT* of time learning
and using Perl.

>$dict is a scalar. %dict is a hash. In that
>example a scalar was used. 

Yes. . . is it a hash, or a scalar?  If it is a scalar, why
is it called dict?  If it is a hash, then why is it prefixed
by $?  If this is a reference instead of a scalar, then why
doesn't it have it's own special prefix character.  ;->

>At least in the discussions I have with people about python I don't
>complain about python syntax I don't understand I just ask what it means.

I am not complaining about syntax I don't understand.  I am complaining
about syntax that is unecesarily difficult to learn, remember, and use.

>Instead of calling it confusing people who actually want to learn something
>ask what it means, and why it is so. You obviously don't want to
>learn but only to criticise. That's fine but it would be better to just
>post to the python group...

What, you believe that you are a mind reader?

You are wrong.  I know what the syntax means.  I criticize because
it is indeed confusing, and difficult to remember.

>You can write Perl programs that resemble sed, or awk, or C, or Lisp, or
>Python. This is Officially Okay in Perl culture.

You cannot write Perl that resemble Python.  You are required to 
use curly braces as block delimiters.

John S.