Why did no one invent Python before?

[Grant Edwards]

On 2004-06-02, Russell E. Owen <no at spam.invalid> wrote:

>>Seriously, why is a language like this only NOW appearing?  And
>>aside from the interpreter, because while it is nice, it's not
>>the main forte' of the language, IMHO.
>
> I think smalltalk users would argue that it was done many years ago. It 
> looks a bit odd at first to C programmers, but is easy to learn and has 
> most of the strengths of python:
> - interpreted
> - automatic garbage collection
> - simple and clean
> - powerful
> - rich set of collection types
> - rich set of libraries
>
> There are a few important differences:
> - much worse for scripting
> - built in GUI
> - much better development environment; you really don't know what you're 
> missing until you've used smalltalk's browsers, inspectors and 
> debuggers. It's the main thing I really, really miss in python.

The big difference between Smalltalk (back then) and Python
(now) is the price of admission -- both financially and
mentally.  

Smalltalk was an amazingly cool system, but I don't remember
any usable free Smalltalk systems until recently.  I think I
paid several hundred USD for the "entry" level version of
Smalltalk for a '286 about 15 years back. Add-on libraries
weren't free, and had to be purchased separately.  It was cool,
but it didn't integrate with _anything_.  It was a world unto
itself. You launched it from DOS, and it completely took over
the machine. Smalltalk was the OS.  You couldn't ease into
Smalltalk the way you can with Python.  You jumped into the
deep end and either swam or drowned.  With python, you can get
your feet wet by wading around in the shallows and gradually
learn to swim as you have the time and inclination.

-- 
Grant Edwards                   grante             Yow!  A dwarf is passing
                                  at               out somewhere in Detroit!
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