Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!apple!well!nagle
From: nagle@well.UUCP (John Nagle)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.lisp
Subject: Re: Unix Lisp Environments (why the slow evolution)
Keywords: resistance to lisp
Message-ID: <11917@well.UUCP>
Date: 31 May 89 18:13:12 GMT
References: <31670@sri-unix.SRI.COM> <469@skye.ed.ac.uk> <1028@syma.sussex.ac.uk> <487@skye.ed.ac.uk>
Reply-To: nagle@well.UUCP (John Nagle)
Lines: 15


     Syntax is an big issue for beginning programmers, but assumes much
less importance once you know a few different languages.  Semantics and
paradigm are much bigger issues when writing sizable programs.  As
programs become larger, syntactical issues retreat in importance and
issues such as namespace control and other modularity issues dominate.

     Most of the attempts to make LISP look like Pascal or one of its
descendants result in a syntax that is more, rather than less, painful.
On the other hand, the fact that data and programs have the same 
representation in LISP really doesn't seem to be used all that much
any more.  It was felt to be terribly important at one time, but today,
it just doesn't seem to be a big issue.

					John Nagle