Python 1.0.0, released 31 years ago today: groups.google.com/g/comp.lang.... --> Tired of decyphering the Perl code you wrote last week? --> Frustrated with Bourne shell syntax? --> Spent too much time staring at core dumps lately? Maybe you should try Python! - ThreadSky

nedbat.com • 26 days ago

Python 1.0.0, released 31 years ago today:

https://groups.google.com/g/comp.lang.misc/c/_QUzdEGFwCo/m/KIFdu0-Dv7sJ

--> Tired of decyphering the Perl code you wrote last week?

--> Frustrated with Bourne shell syntax?

--> Spent too much time staring at core dumps lately?

Maybe you should try Python!

Comments

revspaminator.bsky.social•23 days ago

Python is fun to tinker with, but I'm not sure about the forced indentation. I mean, a nice tribute to FORTRAN and punch cards, but complex code can be difficult to track.

FWIW, I complain about YAML for the same reason, but I still prefer using it for swagger format over JSON.

nedbat.com•23 days ago

I don't understand why people mention FORTRAN when complaining about Python's indentation. Did Fortran have meaningful indentation? I didn't think so.

revspaminator.bsky.social•23 days ago

It's annoying. Like I said, YAML can be just as frustrating.

Overall, it's a pretty minor complaint.

It's way better than the ambiguities of JavaScript.

discovery-process.bsky.social•26 days ago

I'm happy sticking with PERL. Too old to learn something else.

skiswithscissors.bsky.social•26 days ago

I can't quit C.

ax3man1ac.online•26 days ago

You should join the vim support group - apparently they have the same issues with quitting :p

skiswithscissors.bsky.social•26 days ago

Maybe, but they didn't write parts of the NT kernel.

edivimo.bsky.social•26 days ago

Is surprising how old are a lot of programming languages. C is half a century old, and Java is a little younger than Python.

arvid.tech•25 days ago

This got me exited to see what I could build using 1.0.0. 🤔

glen-apatrida.bsky.social•26 days ago

31 years of indentation Insanity. Guess I should write a bracket to indentation front end in perl for those times I need or want to use python.

nedbat.com•25 days ago

You don't indent in your brace-ful code? And if you do, why work hard to keep the two independent channels of information in sync?

glen-apatrida.bsky.social•25 days ago

Yes, always, except when I am debugging and use if (0) { disabled code} that will live 30 seconds to a couple hours as I figure something out. If I use if (0): in python then i fix all the indents and often end up with if (1): later to avoid fixing the indents again.

glen-apatrida.bsky.social•25 days ago

Oh yes. In general but I often put a if (0) { around something to temporarily disable it }

mjmarq.bsky.social•25 days ago

🤣

mcherm.com•24 days ago

Little known fact: python already supports braces, it just uses the two-character form:

for x in range(5): #{
print(x)
#}

noescom1977.bsky.social•25 days ago

Never liked Python. Increasing scope using indentation is silly.

nedbat.com•25 days ago

Good news: indentation usually doesn't change scope.

noescom1977.bsky.social•24 days ago

It still sucks.

nedbat.com•24 days ago

Thanks for stopping by. Have a nice day :)

tractorbeam.bsky.social•26 days ago

With all due respect, it honestly does not surprise me at all that the main problem with python is the first comment on the first release. You can't hold a programming language to such abstraction that it converts integer types behind the programmer's back, especially inaccurate ones.

nedbat.com•25 days ago

Good news: Python 3 doesn't convert integer types. You might be thinking of Python 2.

tractorbeam.bsky.social•25 days ago

1/2 It still tries to remove it from the workflow, which is a bad thing because on a low level, people will need to specify them in a bunch of otherwise unrelated ways (e.g. 10.0) and on a high level, people will be confused as to why 10 + 10 actually equals 20.000009, just not according to print()

nedbat.com•25 days ago

I thought we were talking about integers? Python doesn't make 10+10 into a float.

tractorbeam.bsky.social•25 days ago

An earlier draft even had '(not an actual example)' it just wouldn't fit. Do you have an actual counterargument against what I said or is this just how it's gonna go?

nedbat.com•25 days ago

I don't understand what actual problem you are talking about. "Having them resolved internally": having what resolved?

tractorbeam.bsky.social•25 days ago

Sure, this is more an argument against weakly typed languages, but my point stands that this comment is still related to the problem. Having them resolved internally removes control from the programmer except when specific cases are thrown into the interpreter, which complicates *everything* imo.