Python 2.0

[Paul Prescod]

"Michael P. Reilly" wrote:
> 
> Your conclusion is based on one functionality, which you are incorrect
> about.  UNIX has had IPCs for as long as Micros**t has been around (and
> when it originally sold UNIX).  They are as powerful, if not more, than
> COM systems, depending on how you use them.

If you are particular perverse you could implement object protocols on top
of stream IPCs but the reverse is much easier. I conclude that object
protocols are more powerful. Do you have counter evidence?

> Tooltalk and other middleware systems have existed on UNIX systems for
> most of this decade, and many applications use them.  Tooltalk and
> Softbench are the grandparents of everything you are stating makes the
> Windows platform ahead of UNIX, and they are UNIX creations from before
> Window NT existed.

So you are saying that Unix was ahead in this regard 15 years ago. Is that
relevant?

> There are often better mechanisms in the systems than to use ORBs and
> the like.  The applications usually use them.  

Okay, so I'm a Python programmer on Windows versus Unix. On Windows I
communicate with my favorite structured editor (which happens not to be a
Microsoft product) through a well-defined protocol implemented in a Python
library. I can do sophisticated queries and navigations through my
document structure using COM. I can compare object references, iterate
over lists of application objects, modify the document structure etc.

Now I have a similar app on UNIX. Are you really going to claim that
tooltalk and stream IPC is going to give me the same functionality? If so,
you should go tell the creators of all of the Linux Office packages
because none of them are using ToolTalk and they are choosing CORBA over
IPC for all main functionality.

> It's not that UNIX is "behind," 

I didn't say that UNIX is behind in general. I said that UNIX had a
weakness in this area. If you would put away the anti-Microsoft chip on
your shoulder you could recognize that, encourage the UNIX community to
fix the problem and we would all be better off.

> Paul, you like Windows; we've all learned that.  But to state that UNIX
> is behind simply because you believe that all apps should use one
> functionality isn't going to make your point.

If my point was "Windows is better" then you would be right. But it isn't
my point and it isn't the truth. My point is that Windows is more
functional *in this area*. Is it so hard to admit that there is something
that Redmond could teach Berkley (or Finland)?

If you don't like CORBA (and many people don't) then lets start talking
about what we can make that does the same job better in a cross-platform
way. Surely that's better than pretending a problem doesn't exist just
because the admission would hurt our pride.

-- 
 Paul Prescod  - ISOGEN Consulting Engineer speaking for only himself
 http://itrc.uwaterloo.ca/~papresco

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