Dumb python questions

[brueckd at tbye.com]

On 15 Aug 2001, Paul Rubin wrote:

> Peter Hansen <peter at engcorp.com> writes:
> > Paul Rubin wrote:
> > >
> > > Python is really pleasant to code in and mostly well designed.  I just
> > > keep hitting what seem like little lapses of common sense.
> >
> > You might say that.  The good news is that what Guido did was
> > substitute his own sense, which in the case of language design
> > appears generally to be better than the "common" sense.
>
> That's fair.  A consequence though is Python seems like a one-person
> project, where Guido did a very good job on the parts he found
> interesting, and left other parts somewhat half-baked.

Hi Paul,

(Note: as you read my post, please imagine me reading it to you with a
good-natured smile on my face)

You are most certainly entitled to your opinion, as am I, and my current
opinion is that you are loony. I mean no offense, but why are you using
Python? From each of your posts I get the message that the language just
rubs you the wrong way. If so, don't use it - as you are keen on pointing
out there are other languages you like better.

I've been using Python for several years now and it is the "most baked"
(best designed, most solid, [insert other positve superlatives here])
language I know. All languages have their warts but Python has suprisingly
few (and they're very often hidden away from most of what I do), and most
people find that living with those little problems is well worth it
because Python benefits them in so many other ways (I like an order of
magnitude improvement in productivity, I like that programming is fun
again, etc, etc).

Anyway, if I've totally misunderstood your feelings, please forgive me and
let me at least offer these few bits of advice:

1 - If you're new to Python, give it a chance; get a few programs under
your belt so that your negative feelings towards some features are based
on experience more than knee-jerk reactions.

2 - Try thinking Pythonically. Just because something is different in
Python doesn't make it bad. If you really want to judge the merits of
Python then you need to let go, as much as possible, of some
preconceptions or notions of how things ought to be. You gotta leave
behind the Java/C/or whatever baggage.

3 - Look for the positive (!) - if you're hunting for problems then you
will find them. Big deal, of what use is that? Out of all the issues
you've raised so far, exactly ZERO of them have caused me enough pain in
the past to complain about them. Maybe I'm just easy to please, or maybe
these things are less of a problem in practice than they are in theory (or
maybe some combination of both).

Like I said, I mean no offense. Have fun,
Dave