• To: Norman Gray <norman@a...>
• Subject: Re: Readable syntaxes (was: XUL Compact Syntax Study Now Online)
• From: Jim Rankin <jimbokun_lists@m...>
• Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2004 09:48:08 -0400
• Cc: xml-dev <xml-dev@l...>
• In-reply-to: <Pine.LNX.4.58.0404220934260.27600@ptolemy>
• References: <15725CF6AFE2F34DB8A5B4770B7334EE03F9F686@h...> <Pine.LNX.4.58.0404211550380.10974@ptolemy> <6.1.0.6.2.20040421175432.026fbe98@p...> <Pine.LNX.4.58.0404220934260.27600@ptolemy>

On Apr 22, 2004, at 5:34 AM, Norman Gray wrote:

> This is why RNC compact syntax is more readable -- you're not squinting
> to extract the meaning from amidst all the visual noise.  And I at 
> least
> find something like
>
>   (template "@* | node()"
>     (copy
>       (apply-templates "@* | node()")))
>
> has more chunkable structure, and is simply easier to read (and I'm not
> an old-timer lisp maniac).
>
So, does this support Paul Graham's assertion that every language 
eventually becomes Lisp? [1]

  -jimbo

Excelsior! XML Marshaller for Cocoa
http://www.homepage.mac.com/jimbokun/Excelsior.html

[1] Paraphrased from:

http://www.paulgraham.com/popular.html

"Over time, successive new programming languages have taken more and 
more features from Lisp. There is no longer much left to copy before 
the language you've made is Lisp."

• References:
  • RE: XUL Compact Syntax Study Now Online - Is XML too hard for Aunt Trudie?
    • From: "Bullard, Claude L (Len)" <clbullar@i...>
  • RE: Readable syntaxes (was: XUL Compact Syntax Study NowOnline)
    • From: Norman Gray <norman@a...>
  • RE: Readable syntaxes (was: XUL Compact Syntax Study Now Online)
    • From: Dave Pawson <dpawson@n...>
  • RE: Readable syntaxes (was: XUL Compact Syntax Study NowOnline)
    • From: Norman Gray <norman@a...>

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