Should there be a hardware forum?

[wtd]

JHanson90 wrote:

This is sort of making the posts all off-topic, but in response, what language would you recommend? I mentioned a while back that O'Caml was next on my list, but you've mentioned multiple times that it was hard for you to learn, or it "blew your mind." Sort of discouraging, me not even having a year's experience in programming. Eiffel, maybe, umm... Java, no, ... hmm .... ?

Well, O'Caml isn't as much hard to learn as it is different. If you're used to thinking in one way, O'Caml can be different enough to cause problems. Of course, it does have the interactive interpreter, which is wonderful for learning.

A good one to learn might be Python. I have a Python basics thread in General Programming.

[JHanson90]

wtd wrote:

Well, O'Caml isn't as much hard to learn as it is different. If you're used to thinking in one way, O'Caml can be different enough to cause problems. Of course, it does have the interactive interpreter, which is wonderful for learning.

Python might be ok. O'Reilly has a book on Programming Python, so learning it should be a snap. How useful is it? I haven't heard of many programs written in it. Also, although it's supposed to be interpreted, can it be compiled? All of the languages that I've been working with are scripting languages, and now Python included. I'd like some variety from that

[wtd]

Python is compiled to an intermediate bytecode representation, similar to Java. In contrast, Ruby and Perl5 take the approach of interpreting the syntax tree that results from parsing your code. Both Ruby and Perl are moving (eventually) to virtual machine based approaches, similar to Python's. By the way, don't take this to mean there is a separate compile and run step. Running Python programs is as easy as running Ruby programs.

Python is becoming wildly popular. Google, for instance, requires programmers they hire to know Java, but to make sure they're not just the result of a "Java for dummies" book, they also require a knowledge of Python. Industrial Light and Magic also uses Python heavily internally.

In addition to books on the issue, there is a great deal of information available online for learning Python.

It's a good language. Not as well-designed as Ruby by any means, but currently more popular, and still eminently useful.

[Tony]

come on guys, leave some room for the discussion about a hardware forum.

[wtd]

tony wrote:

come on guys, leave some room for the discussion about a hardware forum.

Forums that don't go wildly off-topic don't deserve to be on the internet.

[josh]

compwis I lke your sig

[apomb]

haha, thanks. gotta love the LOTR theme of your avatar!
but about the HARDWARE forum

see, i stay on topic!

[josh]

i dunno, I jsut am aobbsessed with LOTR and I think Gollum is an amaizing character (both how he is described in the book and how they brought him to life in the movie)