Why don't people like lisp?

[Kenny Tilton]

Jim Newton wrote:

> Perhaps lisp is not so well-liked is because there are not enough
> standard libraries available.  Perl has the CPAN libraries that
> you can simply download and use.  I've heard the Python also
> has a huge number of such libraries.  But if i want a lisp-tk
> CLOS library, i'd have to write it myself, or lisp-DOM, or
> lisp-cvs, or lisp-mySQL.
> 
> On this note, has anyone ever heard of openAccess or openEDA?
> http://www.openeda.org/

Wow. That's the first open source project that demanded a license 
agreement or something before letting me download. They use that word 
Open so much, but I do not think it means what they think it means. :)

Anyway, I just wanted to see what everyone is interfacing to. Oops. You 
already said C++. Might take a C wrapper so Lisp FFIs can cope.

> 
> it's an open source database for dealing with EDA design
> data.  Currently there is a C++ interface and Python.
> At Tcl interface is either here on on its way.
> 
> In my opinion a CLOS library would be much easier to use
> than any of the other, if it existed.  But what i've decided
> to do in the mean time is to start from scratch learing
> Python.

If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem. 
Tilton's Law: Solve the right problem. Your problem is not that you do 
not know Python. A giveaway is that learning Python will not help you 
use OpenEDA from Lisp. That is your problem. What is the solution? UFFI 
bindings for OpenEDA. Regrettably, possibly also some gluing of C++ 
classes to C structs so Lisp FFIs can cope. The good news is that the 
problem is linear and finite, albeit tedious. But crafty Lisp macros can 
help. Might take a week or two. I and others here can help with that.

Tilton's Law: Move towards the light. If you have to do some hard work 
over the next few weeks, would you rather (a) know and be using Python 
or (b) know Lisp FFIs (it's not /that/ bad) and be using Lisp?

> 
> The C++ standard API is open, and well documented.  Does
> anyone volunteer to start such a openAcces --> CLOS
> project?
> 

<g> Yep, some guy named:

> 
> -jim
> 

And I can help you with the FFI. Do they /really/ use C++ classes, or is 
it just C in C++ clothing? Is it a persistent C++ DB format? Probably 
not. I am thinking, just read the DB in Lisp, eliminate the bothersome 
middleman. They didn't use XML? Or is it more than a DB, really?

kenny

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