Why is python not written in C++ ?

[Michael Torrie]

On 08/01/2010 07:09 PM, John Bokma wrote:
>> One thing that comes to mind is that it's much easier to distribute C 
>> libraries than C++ libraries.
> 
> In the beginning of C++ there were programs that just converted C++ to C
> (frontends). At least that is how the C++ compiler Acorn sold worked.
> So I don't think your argument was much true back then.

No, he is still right.  Each C++ implementation did name mangling
differently leading to "C" libraries that had incompatible names and
signatures.  Also each frontend could have generated incompatible
vtables and other C++ structures.  So C code generated by one C++
frontend could not easily call C code generated by another C++ frontend.
 So the same arguments that are made about C++ now were just as valid
back then when C++ was merely a fancy preprocessor.