> On Sun, Feb 1, 2009 at 4:27 PM, John Barham <jbar...@gmail.com> wrote: >> Dynamic loading allows scripting languages to load arbitrary binary >> extensions at run-time. Without dynamic loading in Plan 9... > > You're missing the beauty of 9p. Who needs dynload() when you have mount()?
this thinking goes back to the beginning with pipes and the shell. to use object-oriented language out of place, any program that produces or consumes a byte stream can be extended by another program that produces or consumes a byte stream. with a thread library program that passes messages on channels, one could do similar extensions by replacing one end of the channel in a similar manner to replacing a program in a regular pipe. though message typing would limit the generality of the arrangement. - erik
