Why is Python popular, while Lisp and Scheme aren't?

[Alexander Schmolck]

Michael Hudson <mwh at python.net> writes:

> Jacek Generowicz <jacek.generowicz at cern.ch> writes:
> 
> > Michael Hudson <mwh at python.net> writes:
> > 
> > > > Anyway, what IDE /do/ you use?
> > > 
> > > Emacs + an interactive session in an xterm or Terminal.app window.
> > 
> > Why do you prefer this to having your interactive session within
> > Emacs?
> 
> Habit, mainly.  I also don't really like comint interfaces, and
> playing about interactively is very important to me.
> 
> > I find Python mode's provision for sending code to the Python
> > session for execution, extremely useful.
> 
> Perhaps I should try it.
> 
> Do you hilight a region and then thwack a key combination to execute
> it?

Yep (C-c |). 

Once you've got used to it, you'll also find that comint is much more powerful
and useable than the readline facilities python provides (searching backward
for the last line with same beginning (with M-C-p) is e.g. something I
wouldn't want to miss). Similarly, quick searches through *output* are
extremely valuable to me.

You can also have your history saved and loaded automatically. The only thing
that interactive python offers over emacs's py-shell is completion (but M-/
normally does the trick and if it doesn't you can have a look at ipython, for
which I wrote an ipython.el that includes an experimental hack for
tab-completion).

alex