New Python User Question about Python.

Chris Barker chrishbarker at home.net
Mon Aug 27 14:35:57 EDT 2001


Tim Peters wrote:
> > Apparently, a major effort to optimise for speed is not on the top
> > of the developers list,
> 
> That's true, but it appears to be mixed with a misunderstanding of reality:
> there's no major effort of *any* kind on the developers' list, neither at
> the top nor at the bottom.

Good point, although I think that must of us here are aware of that, but
that doesn't keep the fantasys from flying!!


> 120% of available time is consumed by an endless
> sequence of small but achievable projects; 

That's why I generally try to advocate for such "small but acheivable
projects":

Much as I'd like a fully-optimised, type infering, Python compiler, what
I am hoping we might be able to get (as you'll see elsewhere in this
post) is a way to "sprinkle in a few static type declarations" so that
something Py2C like could build a simple compiled module for you: for
the same kind of things that many of us currently build custom functions
for by hand.

Better yet: I'd love to see Python add homogenous sequences as a
concept. First the concept, which could be used by extension modules to
make type checking a whole lot easier, and perhaps ultimately in the
interpreter to make list comprehensions and the like much faster. First
the infrastructure, then, hopefully, the actual optimisations.

There may be major flaws with my homogenous sequence idea, but I have
been unable to coax thoughtful analysis out of any of the truly
knowledgeable folks in this group so far. Maybe it's such a stupid idea
that no one bothers...

-Chris

-- 
Christopher Barker,
Ph.D.                                                           
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