Posted by Adie on 09/18/05 02:05

Phlip wrote:

> www.douglassdavis.com wrote:
>
>> I'll check it out, but this kinda scared me:
>>
>> Features of Ruby
>>
>> * Ruby has simple syntax, partially inspired by Eiffel and Ada.
>>
>> IMO, there's a reason why people aren't flocking to use Eiffel and
>> Ada... Although Ruby it should be interesting, so I'll take a look.
>
> I don't know who wrote that. Ruby was invented to compete directly,
> head-to-head, with both Perl and Smalltalk at the same time. That's an
> incredible stretch, and Matz did it by bowing to Perl's kewtzey /regexp/
> syntax, with magic $1 and $2 variables for the match results. Matz then
> fixed this otherwise ridiculous system by making $ the prefix for global
> variables _only_. That instantly makes $1 and $2 work, because they are
> nothing but stereotypical global variables.
>
> Ruby competes with Smalltalk by making everything an object, including
> classes, and making all objects indefinitely extensible. Oh, and block
> closures so you don't need zillions of lines of code to get trivial things
> done. Block closures permit local variables to have the narrowest scope
> possible over indefinite lifespans, enhancing encapsulation without the need
> for excessive plumbing to route those variables into the called-back block
> where they are ultimately used.

And I guess C++ is not worth the effort.

[Back to original message]