Prothon 0.1.2 is getting close to Alpha [Prothon]

[Peter Hansen]

Mark Hahn wrote:

> Peter Hansen wrote:
>>Excellent reply, Mark.  Thank you.
> 
> You're no fun.  I was trolling for a rip-roaring flame-war :-)
> 
> Seriously though I know those topics aren't of great interest to c.l.p. or
> people here wouldn't be using Python.  

Here I think you underestimate the community, and a large number
of people in it.  I think Python programmers, more than many many
other groups out there, are keenly interested in issues such as
reliability, security, and such.  As but one example, the fact
that so many of us choose Python over other languages is in part
because of the greater security found in avoiding buffer overruns
and memory allocation bugs, and the reliability of knowing our
code will pretty much *never* crash the entire computer, and
that tracebacks will point us more quickly to the cause of bugs
so we can fix them.  Okay, three or four examples...

My real point, though, is that Python programmers are perhaps
above all else *pragmatic*.  We'll keep using Python as long as
it is so effective, even with its warts, while we either
eagerly or casually (depending on our own nature) observe
idealists like you who have the time and inclination to try
to improve things.  If and when you succeed, many will probably
explore the possibility of making a shift to the new offshoot,
and the Great Tree of Computer Languages will have expanded
by one more generation.  So don't assume that there isn't
interest here.

But, in the meantime, we have work to do, and Python is pretty
damn good at getting out of our way and letting us do it.  (And
for the same reason, we appreciate the fact that most of the
Prothon discussion is in its own mailing list, if I can channel
the silent majority for a moment. :-)

-Peter