From: boud at rempt.xs4all.nl (boud at rempt.xs4all.nl)
Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 14:29:19 GMT
Subject: Designing Large Systems with Python
References: <m37lqz0yoa.fsf@solo.david-steuber.com> <FAusCK.BF@rempt.xs4all.nl> <m3wvyxxkkl.fsf@solo.david-steuber.com>
Message-ID: <FAwLKv.9K@rempt.xs4all.nl>
Content-Length: 1791
X-UID: 689                                                  

David Steuber <trashcan at david-steuber.com> wrote:
: 
: I never heard it being _that_ bad.  I am hoping that the modular
: nature of Python allows me to throw away the stuff that turns out to
: be crap and insert replacement code without a complete re-write.
:

Mind you, I was talking about a VB-5 project (which also won't compile
under VB-6, but that's another issue...), but the general problem is
that after your first millionth line you won't be able to guess as to
what to throw away, even if you program in Python. 

On the other hand, after an absence of two weeks I've spent today the
whole day in rebuilding my development environment to the point where
I could compile code again... That's a problem Python wouldn't have,
anyway. And I've never come across problems with corrupted type
libraries or the like in Python.

: 
: This is assuming I actually get my but in gear and go ahead with the
: project I have in mind.  It is a project of the ambitious sort where
: the word hubris is a hopelessly inadequate description of my state of
: mind in even contemplating the thing.
: 

I don't know anything about Lisp, apart from having gone through 
'The Little Lisper', and my adventures with Eiffel have been brief, so
I don't know about those, but my feeling is that if you want to start 
a really big project you need two things: organization and robust
wrists...

Anyway, I have decided to use Python for my personal projects and whatever
it's qualities for multi-million line projects, I'm a happy, productive
and creative programmer, no longer plagued by pointer arithmetic and
the amount of code I have to type has decreased enormously. So I'd say
that whatever you plan, short of a new operating system, go with
Python.
-- 

Boudewijn Rempt  | www.xs4all.nl/~bsarempt




