Joe Tibollo wrote: > Using script files in J is a lot more difficult than using script > files in VB.
On Linux? VB has an advantage in the context of Windows: it comes pre-installed with the operating system and is integrated with many aspects of the system. I don't anticipate J getting incorporated into Windows any time soon. > Another big item for me is the debug environent. The APL or VB > debugging environment is a pleasure to use. I find the J debugger > awkward to use. Personally, I find J easier to debug than either APL (which I do not have installed) or VB (which I rarely use). I'll also note that you've not specified which APL you are using. I'll agree that J's debugger could be, at least in principle, a debugging environment which takes greater advantage of the context of the script and better integrates into the context where the script is being used. > Just one more rub - for some reason APL and J people are under > some allusion that they have access to this magical language > that allows them to avoid hundreds of line of coding with > alternate languages. Maybe some people have that point of view. However, that does not describe why I like J. I like J because it lets me express many ideas (about programs and their architecture) concisely. I often find that I can better solve some problems in other languages if I borrow from J's approaches. And, of course, sometimes it's just the best tool for the job. (Recent example: building a CSV file for an intel engineer to use to drive load testing.) > In other words I have spent years taking the concepts from > J/APL and building functions to handle arrays or vectors in VB, > C - and I am satisfied that I can work just as efficiently > regardless of the language. I'm in an analogous position to you. However I move from one language environment to another (and from one application domain to another) rather frequently. Thus, I cannot rely on building up a J-like toolkit to address weaknesses in the utility of those other environments. > If we want to have an honest debate of what people find good or > bad (easy or difficult) when using J then we need to listen a bit > more and acknowledge a point when its made. Personally, I could care less about such debates. I think those debates tell us more about the person than the language. I do acknowledge that useful points can come out of a person's reflections on how they work. Sometimes. -- Raul ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
