I know that this has to be a quite frequently asked question, but a group only gets more valuable members by helping people who want to learn. Currently I'm sort of proficient with DOS commands. Obviously you cannot create a complicated graphical program out of DOS. I've heard all over this board that Python sucks, which ironically is the one language most of my friends recommended learning. What language can I learn that is actually useful?
I come to /prog/ for you guys are the only assholes on the internet that will bash other languages if they do suck. Forums have to be 'unbiased' and 'neutral'.
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Anonymous2009-07-23 18:00
>>40
ffffffffffff! ok I figured it out.
Ok! below is how you quote correctly!
> Quote goes here
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Anonymous2009-07-23 18:01
Quote Ok lets see if this works!!! I'm excited!
Do you have to put the word Quote in or not? Oh well I guess I'm about to find out.
OP here. Several questions:
What's so good about CL, or Lisp at all?
What can Python do on its own? I actually am thinking about using a language to script/make programs that perform functions on my computer, for essentially customizing the way my computer works, and then if I can master that, make programs for my computer, then hopefully onto programs for other computers, etc. in that fashion.
Is SICP the all-encompassing manual for computer languages?
What is the difference between strong typing and static typing, or whichever the two options are?
>>44
Troll detected! Command? Feed troll.
What's good about LISP? macros
What can Python do? Most anything, why else would faggots use it.
Is SICP all-encompasing? No.
What's... typing? One's ability to abuse variables.
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OP2009-07-23 20:17
>>46
No troll. I've seriously been under the impression since my introduction to computers that Python, C++, Java, and any web-based language were the only ones worth learning.
LISP + ASSEMBLY = Useful? I've always had a keen on ASSEMBLY.
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Anonymous2009-07-23 20:26
What is the difference between strong typing and static typing, or whichever the two options are?
It's Strong vs. Weak.... otherwise known as Static vs. Dynamic.
Basically, a Weakly type (aka Dynamic) language allows you to directly mix operations between variables of different types. (ie. you can treat a string of text containing "1500" as if it were an integer whose value is 1500).
>>47
LISP + ASSEMBLY = HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
In my experience, functional programmers (and this may be an unfair generalization) tend to not like dirtying their hands with machine-dependant code. LISP and assembly do not go together. The only LISP OSes I know of are either failures or were written for LISP machines. Richard Stallman decided that GNU was to be in C because he was the only LISP programmer he knew who would dirty his hands with the retched feces of porting assembly from one architecture to another.
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Anonymous2009-07-23 20:56
>>48
I know IHBT, but strong/weak is orthogonal to static/dynamic. A dynamic language is one where any variable or data structure can refer to a value of any type. A weakly typed language is one where you can read a value of type X as if it were a value of type Y, with no regard as to whether it will come back as gibberish.
C has static weak typing. Scheme has strong dynamic typing. Objective-C has (sort of) dynamic weak typing. Haskell has strong static typing. These are the words of the Beast, whose army will rise from the blood of the innocent to make war against God. I found the knitting pattern for her hand warmers.
>>52
I like the summary "In static typing, variables have types; In dynamic typing, values have types", although I can't think where I heard it originally.
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Anonymous2009-07-23 21:08
>>52 Haskell has strong static typing THE BEST KIND
>>51
You just go to show that nobody likes talking about Lisp as much as people who don't know it. Lisp isn't even a functional language, and Lispers have no qualms being machine-specific when it's called for. They're just bright enough to know it rarely is called for. Especially when you're running on another OS.
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Anonymous2009-07-23 23:34
LISP = Loves Intimately Sucking Penis
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Anonymous2009-07-23 23:50
>>60
Did you mean:
LISP = Love's Intimately Sucking Penis
I am now picturing this.
OP, learning new languages isn't hard once you know a few. The only hard parts is learning new programming paradigms, not new languages. The main programming paradigms you'll encounter are imperative languages(C, SEPPLES, Java), functional languages(Scheme, Haskell, ML), object oriented languages(Java, C#), meta-programming(possible in some languages through extensions, while others support it natively), declarative programming, logic programming and others. Some languages are multi-paradigm and allow you to use any given style(CL).