Booleans, integer division, backwards compatibility; where is Python going?

[Paul Rubin]

Cliff Wells <logiplexsoftware at earthlink.net> writes:
> Ah, you must have chose APL or Forth, since they're pretty much in the
> feature-lock stage.  It can't be C since they've also added the damn
> boolean. 
> 
> Seriously though, if this is a big concern for you (and it might well be),
> target the 1.5.2 language spec and the chances of your code not working
> even in 2.2 are slim, so I'm not sure what would be compelling enough to
> make you abandon Python.  I myself don't like every change in Python (or
> even some things that have been in place since 1.5.2) but it's still an
> excellent language.  I suspect you are masking some other complaint with
> this one.

The issue isn't that change happens, but that it happens too damn
frequently.  Python has added new language features in 2.0, 2.2, and
now 2.3, and I think they're all within a year or so of each other.
C goes for a decade at a time without changes like that.

I like Python a lot but I think it falls a little bit short of truth
in advertising, when it calls itself a stable, mature language.
Mature to me means I can download someone's interesting new Python
script and not have to install a new version of Python in order to run
it.  That means the language shouldn't sprout new features so quickly
(new library modules is fine) and should try hard to not make
backward-incompatible changes.

Most users NEVER upgrade their system software and I try to never
upgrade mine.  The only time I normally get new system software is
when I buy a new computer (every 2-3 years, say) and install a current
OS on it from scratch.  Stable, mature software should be able to run
for that long without needing to be upgraded.  I find just can't
expect that from Python.