[Gllug] OSS CMSs

[Doug Winter]

Dani Pardo wrote:
>   I'm using Perl for several years now. I know little Perl, but I think 
> the point is about using the right language at the right place. You can 
> write clean code in Perl (I do). And you don't have to use Schwartzian 
> transform and all those ugly maps() almost never. I prefer to penalize 
> performance against clean code.

Having to choose between the two is a sign of a broken language.

In Python, instead of the awful Schwartzian Transform you can do 
something like the following interpreter session.  I've chosen a 
particularly noddy function, but obviously it could be anything:

 >>> l = [1,2,3,4,5,6]
 >>> def func(x): return -x
...
 >>> l.sort(lambda x,y: cmp(func(x), func(y)))
 >>> l
[6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1]

Clean, obvious what it does and quick (the built in sort method is very 
efficient).

Generally in python the most elegant code is also the code that has the 
best performance.  To be fair 'elegant' is in the eye of the beholder to 
some extent, and some 'Pythonic' constructions look weird till you are 
used to the language.

The Schwartzian Transform reminds me of Duff's Device, and gives me the 
same jitters when I see it :)

>   BTW: As my CGIs and web applications are growing in complexity, I've 
> reached a point that I realized I'm not using the right language for 
> such a big applications. So I'm moving to Java (ouch!) and I know I'll 
> miss Perl for what it is good at: getting the job done before you get 
> fired :)

You've just gone and chose another wrong language.  See, we're going to 
have the Java Jihad after all.  huzzah. :).

doug.

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