Evil Bastard wrote: > bruno modulix wrote: >> You can tell buy the most common use. bash is a scripting language, >> javascript is a scripting language, perl is a scripting language, php is >> a scripting language, Python is *not* a scripting language !-) > > Perhaps a better definition - the term 'scripting language' is > increasingly being used by CTOs as a justification for saving money by > putting large chunks of their workforces on lower pay scales - an > attitude of 'scripters aren't as skilled as real programmers, so don't > deserve the same pay'. > > To me, the term is archic. What 'scripting language' means to me is: > 1. insufficient facilities for general purpose or 'serious' programming > 2. ability to get simple useful programs up and working quickly > 3. absence of a hack/compile/link/test cycle.
My view too. > What makes 1 and 3 redundant is that linkage mechanisms have diversified > over the years. For instance, java and python's 'import' statements, > java's CLASSPATH and python's 'sys.path'. > > I guess a language could be called a 'scripting language' if: > - the source code can be executed directly, and/or > - source need not be converted to a separate file in a > non-human-readable format before it can be executed, and/or > - a change to the source file automatically causes a change in > runtime behaviour > > By these, Python is most definitely a scripting language, and joins Perl > and PHP. Whereas changes to java source files don't change runtime > behaviour. Though they prefer to be called "agile languages" nowadays. Reinhold -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
