in defense of Java, again [was: Re: Task Scheduling]

[Mister E]

Jayce^ wrote:
> It's the classic flame against Perl.  It's flexible, so therefore, it
> must be messy.  Basically Perl code is a reflection of the developer.


I think any code is the reflection of the programmer(s).  I've have been 
coding as a regular job or on the side for over 25 years. Started in 
Fortran 77, Cobol, Pascal RPG II, and yes even did a bit of card punch. 
    No matter the language, you will find zealots as well as poor 
excuses for programmers.

> 
> Basically, different languages not only have different strengths for
> different situations, but their whole composition has strengths that
> make it better for different people.  You see people here have mentioned
> how easy and great python is for reading (something they seem to mention
> endlessly), and yet when I was choosing between Perl and Python to learn
> way back in the day, I absolutely found Perl more readable.  Why?
> because it fits me better.  Python for some, Perl for others, use the
> one that is easier for you.  For me, Python seemed to bring all the
> things I didn't like about Java to a scripting language, without the
> good features.

I found PERL to be highly readable and easy to grasp it's TIMTOWTDI 
concept.  I like the language a lot, but more so the philosophy behind 
it.  However, I know some of the core folks involved in the Ruby on Rail 
project, I like the direction of that language as well.  If I could I'd 
list all the ones I enjoy, but these two top my list at the current 
time, in regards to enjoyment.

Mister Ed