Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!cadence!cadence!barnes From: barnes@cadence.com (Tim Barnes) Newsgroups: comp.lang.scheme Subject: Re: Scheme as the only extension language Message-ID: Date: 29 Aug 90 12:08:54 GMT References: Sender: usenet@cadence.com (USENET News) Distribution: comp.lang.scheme Organization: Cadence Design Systems, Inc. Lines: 34 In-Reply-To: ramsdell@mitre.org's message of 28 Aug 90 10:57:44 GMT In article ramsdell@mitre.org (John D. Ramsdell) writes: > It would be nice if Scheme replaced other lisp-like extensions > languages. Of course, I do not expect this to happen, but it would be > nice. Some contributors to this news group have suggested that > Scheme's use should be more general. They point to TeX and PostScript > as examples of extension languages that could benefit from the ideas > in Scheme. Taking this even further, is there anyone who asserts that > Scheme could be the right extension language for a TeX-like or a > PostScript-like system? How would you integrate the text with Scheme > code? > John Scheme is very attractive as an extension language, because it's small, potentially quite efficient (simple data structures; optimized tail recursion etc.), very powerful (continuations, delay/force etc.) and has a good model for interactive use (a critical attribute, in my view). The CAD Framework Initiative recently saw presentations of eight CAD System Extension Languages, of which six were lisp-based. I believe that the extension language for the Interleaf desktop publishing system is a dialect of lisp, and I know that the "Make Interchange Format" (MIF), supported by Frame (also a desktop publishing system would be "lisp-like" or "EDIF-like" (if you're from the electronic CAD industry) if you changed "<" to "(" and ">" to ")". As we know from Gnu emacs, lisp is a very successful extension language for text processing systems. -- / / Manager, Framework Technology - Cadence Design Systems -/- o /__ ___ __ ___ ___ ___ 2455 Augustine Drive / / /\ /\ / / ___/ / / / /__/ /__ Santa Clara, CA 95054-3082 /__ / / \/ \ /__/ /__/ / / / /__ ___/ barnes@cadence.com (408) 987 5417