> I usually refrain from commenting on articles/posts like these, as nothing > good usually comes from it, but it still irritates me that there may be > some people whose first exposure to array languages may come from idiotic > comments like this one.
Look at it this way: The people whose first exposure to array languages come from such comments and then decide to make it their last, how big a loss to the array languages community is that? On Tue, Oct 22, 2013 at 7:48 PM, Kenneth Lettow <[email protected]>wrote: > I still consider myself relatively new to array languages, especially when > compared to the estimable members of these forums. I have learned a great > deal from the languages, as well as the incredibly helpful user communities > that support them. > > The one thing that always chafes my ass is when I come across negative > comments about array languages when reading a general interest article on > the web. > > Here is one I came across today. > > > http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/bitwise/2013/10/healthcare_gov_problems_what_5_million_lines_of_code_really_means.html > > quote from the article: > > On the other hand, here’s a line of APL (“A Programming > Language<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APL_(programming_language)>”) > > code: > > (~R∈R°.×R)/R←1↓ιR > > That code prints out all the prime numbers from 1 to R. APL is a > > notoriously terse and nightmarish language. I have successfully avoided > > ever coding in it. One single line of APL code could contain half a dozen > > bugs. > > > > Clearly, this guy has never used APL, yet he has no problem dumping on it > even after stating that he has avoided ever coding in it. > > I want to know what the origin of this negativity is? > > Did array'ers go around bullying programmers of other languages at > conferences before I began using J? Did Ken Iverson pee in Dijkstra's > coffee cup in 1968< > http://www.jsoftware.com/pipermail/chat/2007-November/000633.html> > ? > > I usually refrain from commenting on articles/posts like these, as nothing > good usually comes from it, but it still irritates me that there may be > some people whose first exposure to array languages may come from idiotic > comments like this one. > > <end rant> > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
