[pypy-dev] How to translate 300000 lines of C

[Armin Rigo]

Hello Holger,

On Tue, Jan 21, 2003 at 03:17:05PM +0100, holger krekel wrote:
> > What I think is needed is a tool, that does the
> > translation partially automatically, partially
> > on my command, with some scripted rules.
> 
> *This* still seems like a nightmare to me. you
> have the complexity for both developments (CPython
> and PyPython) and the added complexity of syncing
> them.  Unless your C-to-python translation is 
> fully automatic. 

I would say the goal is to completely automate this translation --- not in the
sense that we have The Ultimate C-to-Python Translator(tm), but in the sense
that all hints and special cases have to be described in custom .py files
attached to the .c sources.  "Regular" non-special-case'd changes to the 
CPython source come "for free" into MiniPy.

> Note, that taking the 'pythonic code as primary 
> ressource' route wasn't possible for the Jython
> people at the time.  And they have a hard time
> catching up. 

Both Jython and the old Stackless demonstrate badly enough that translating
the CPython code manually might be quite possible, but if you do it, your
project is doomed to become completely out-of-date after a couple of years.  
Let's not repeat that mistake.


A bientôt,

Armin.