Subject: Re: Scripting
From: Tomasz Wegrzanowski (maniek@beer.com)
Date: Sat Jun 24 2000 - 19:19:21 CDT
On Sun, Jun 25, 2000 at 01:58:20AM +0200, Aaron Lehmann wrote:
> > Personally, I prefer Python, but I rather doubt that our users
> > are going to appreciate that much more. It's easy, but it's
> > just not Visual Basic. If there is ever such a thing as a normal
> > user of AbiWord who wants it to have scripting, then they want
> > it to be VB.
>
> First off, I admit that I don't know visual basic and I don't want to. But
> is there anything specifically easier or friendlier about this proprietary
> language or is it just FUD from microsoft?
I knew VB (but almost forgot).
Pros:
- There is very litte silly characters that upset newbies (like {}[]#$\; )
I know about none real language with similar property, but I know
at least one good counter-example ( perl )
- Intendation is not significant
( this is biggest problem with python, newbie's scripts are usually
no more than 2 level depht, and intending is *really* tiring )
- case is insignificant. This is default for Windows.
Because default for Linux is case significance, they may quickly
get used to it, but on WinAbiWord it could be a minor problem
- Function Names are translated. I know this is hacker's nightmare,
but for most newbies in Poland it is easier to have ŚREDNIA()
than MEDIAN() etc.
> > I could picture us implementing Guile, simply as a self-serving
> > effort to please ourselves, the geeks of the project. However,
> > I don't think we would want our users to know about it. Guile
> > is the antithesis of K.I.S.S.
>
> I don't see anything wrong with pleasing the geeks too. Selfishly, I work
> on AbiWord for fun and I don't really have a user focus. I think it's
> important to focus on users but I don't like doing it myself in an open
> source context. I definately don't see anything wrong with user focus.
What about first making list of things that script-language would be doing,
(!= what VB does in MSOffice)
and then deciding which one to choose, instead of choosing
language on base of personal feelings.
I think scripts should be able to access document both linearly and
structurally with equal ease.
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