Waffling between Python and Ruby

[Ken Seehof]

Warren Postma wrote:

> I was looking at the Ruby editor/IDE for windows and was disappointed with
> RubyWin, although it is definitely coming along. I noticed the smalltalk
> like immediate mode (Type code, hit ctrl-J, results inserted into the
> buffer) but did not see any debugging features. Are such features
> (debugging, syntax highlight) in the works for this? Is there going to be a
> cross-platform gui other than Tcl/TK for Ruby?  I love Python and I love the
> wxPython effort, but I also like a few things about Ruby better than python.
> They are:
>
> Chief Irritants In Python:
>
> 1.  After using Python seriously for 6 months, I must confess I still
> dislike the "whitespace as syntax".  I like the fact that Ruby uses block
> markers (begin, end) instead of tabs. This means cheifly to me that I don't
> need to worry about how my editor handles tabs and spaces.  Having something
> look correct on the screen, but not work because of misuse of tabs versus
> spaces, or incorrect indentation, is something that still continues to bug
> me.

I'm in the pro-whitespace club.  However the number one most obvious improvement
in python would be to simply make tab characters illegal.  This would neutralize
your complaint, which I have to agree with.

> 2. Python uses ":" to introduce a new scope, something I find extraneous,
> and more irritating than begin/end or Ruby's def and end for functions, for
> example.

A matter of taste.

> 3. Python is much slower than Ruby, in my informal tests.
>
> So here are the things I'm still wondering, and perhaps there is a "Python
> to Ruby FAQ" somewhere to answer it:
>
> 1. What is the Ruby equivalent of Python's ability to import a module and
> view its contents through code:
>
>             import somemodule
>             print dir(somemodule)
>
> 2. What is the Ruby equivalent of eval, and exec?
>
> 3. Is there a decent Language Reference guide similar to Pythons?
>
> 4. Is there a reference guide to writing extensions in C for Ruby similar to
> Pythons?
>
> I am by no means going to abandon Python, as it is more mature, it solves
> many problems, and Python has extremely advanced Windows integration (the
> windows extensions give more COM and DCOM and WinAPI functionality than
> Ruby) and a more thorough set of GUI toolkits, and a better set of database
> toolkits, and I can live with the whitespace-as-syntax as long as I have the
> right kind of editor. Python is truly a joy to work with. However,  I forsee
> room for both Python and Ruby in my repertoire in the future, and I see that
> Ruby will be a success as both a scripting and an application development
> language.
>
> You want a killer Ruby feature?  I suggest static typing and a Ruby to C
> converter that accelerates 2x or more over ruby.
>
> Ruby is a great language. If I had to make it even, by criticizing something
> in Ruby, it would be that I am not sold on some of the Perl idioms ($_
> anyone? Blech). But I like Ruby's syntax, and I don't have to use the perl
> headspace if I don't want to. :-)
>
> Warren

--
Ken Seehof
kens at sightreader.com
starship.python.net/crew/seehof
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