Re: Shrinking the C core

[Bob Rogers]

   From: Arthur Miller <arthur.miller@live.com>
   Date: Fri, 08 Sep 2023 04:00:56 +0200

   Alan Mackenzie <acm@muc.de> writes:

   > Hello, Arthur.
   >
   > On Wed, Sep 06, 2023 at 07:04:43 +0200, Arthur Miller wrote:
   >> Richard Stallman <rms@gnu.org> writes:
   > . . .
   >> > Also, there are aspects of Common Lisp which i rejected as clumsy and
   >
   >> With all respect to you, but sound to me like an emotional argument, not
   >> a rational one.
   >
   > It's a rational argument expressed in emotional terms for simplicity.

   What you basicaly say: it somehow is a summarization of some more
   advanced/complicated reasons which can't be explained, but have to be
   expressed in the term "I don't like it" for the simplicity?

It's an aesthetic argument, and I am sure we can all agree that language
design has a large and important aesthetic component.  I believe Richard
can justify leaving out (e.g.) keywords from the core language on that
basis alone.

   Mind you, I do agree with your practical arguments, and I appreciate
the references concerning the growing complexity of modern languages and
their communities.  What I think nobody has yet mentioned (and at the
risk of adding to an overlong and possibily off-topic discussion) is the
fact that the learning-curve issue should be less of a problem to the
embedded language of the "self-documenting" editor.

                                        -- Bob Rogers
                                           http://www.rgrjr.com/