On Tuesday, April 16, 2002, at 01:47 AM, Bruce Van Allen wrote: > 2. Chris has promptly and forthrightly apologized; any further > discussion that does not acknowledge this would seem inappropriate.
I do acknowledge, it is very kind of you Chris. I commend that. I have also commended you on the pains you take in writing clear explanations, but now cringe at the thought that you/others might be prefixing it with a sigh of boredom. On Tuesday, April 16, 2002, at 01:51 AM, Ken Williams wrote: > On Tuesday, April 16, 2002, at 02:02 PM, ashley wrote: > this list is becoming nearly useless if os x is supposed > to be its focus. > > Which begs the question of what the hell *is* this list for, anyway? Yes indeed... what is it for, and who decides that? Esp. since everything I might want to know about Perl I can find on Google. I am a MacOS X user, and I am using (learning) Perl. So I am on a macosx@perl list. I have asked questions on how to make Perl work, as well as on how to work with Perl. I (or any other beginner for that matter) cannot learn Perl or be endeared to it if I constantly live under the fear that every question I submit to the list is possible going to offend some seasoned Perl hacker. Funny thing is, I am an advanced computer user/programmer. I am a beginner only as far as Perl is concerned. And as much as I am enamored with Perl (mainly because of its inherent linguistic bent and cultural chaos both of which appeal to the non-computer side of me), I have encountered nothing but pain in the derriere trying to make it work. Only last night was I finally able to make Perl/mod_perl/Apache work using Randal's instructions I found at http://mathforum.org/epigone/modperl/fermkhiwhand/m1wv11m544.fsf_-_@halfdome. holdit.com (via David Wheeler). That it took me so long is abominable. That I kept on trying is amazing. I don't _have_ to use Perl. My only paying job involves exclusive use of Windows using CF/PHP/JavaScript and the usual databases. Perl is not easy. It is not easy to install, configure, or learn. But Perl is fun, just like MacOS. For me Macs make computers bearable, and now Perl does the same. Please, please don't take the fun out of it for those beginning with it. If you don't want to respond to the question, delete it. If you don't like a particular subscriber, put a mail filter. You will be doing a disservice to a language you love, but at least no one will be discouraged. As on Monday, April 15, 2002, at 11:41 PM, Peter N Lewis wrote: > The folks who ask simple questions today are the ones answering them > for newbies next week - that's the way these things work... 'nuff said. Cheers. pk/
