float / double support in Python?

[Martijn Faassen]

Brandon Van Every <vanevery at 3dprogrammer.com> wrote:
[snip]
> Not supporting a basic machine type in the year 2003 is brain dead.  It is
> excusable in new languages with limited problem domains.

Not abstracting away basic machine types in the 2003 is brain dead It is
execusable in old languages with limited problem domains. :)

This depends, as many things, on your perspective..

> 3D graphics programmers are going to knock Python
> for this until it's fixed.

Why do you want to write low level 3D code in Python? Python is not very
optimal for this kind of thing, though I imagine Python may still be
useful to manage a bunch of lower level extensions.

I can only think of one main reason to write such low level 3D code in
Python and that's to have an easier time experimenting, but then raw
performance does not matter too much.

> You are wrong.  Generally, I post when I'm exhausted from other coding
> tasks.  I don't have the hours in the day right now to deal with Python /
> C++ / Visual Studio 6.0 cans 'o' worms.  So I'm bugging people here to get
> information, when my mind doesn't work anymore.

It is generally a useful thing to post with a working mind, so you don't
come across the wrong way. :)

Anyway, Python by itself is just not a very good language for low level
performance oriented programming such as 3D programming. It is a very
good language for high level concept oriented programming, however. 
It may help glueing together low level performance oriented things, 
as well. Perhaps considering it that way will be enlightening.

Regards,

Martijn
-- 
History of the 20th Century: WW1, WW2, WW3?
No, WWW -- Could we be going in the right direction?