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This is a big part, if not the most important part, of why I like Haskell. "Purity" is a giant stroke in the direction of using the least powerful language poss
by tel 11y ago
This is a big part, if not the most important part, of why I like Haskell. "Purity" is a giant stroke in the direction of using the least powerful language possible at all times (and the advanced types let you both declare the level of power you want and compose sub-languages of different powers together). You also often go deeper due to the large prevalence of deep or shallow embedded DSLs in the typed-functional languages.
In short, this is, to me, one of the most important principles of programming.
- eatonphil 11y agoSo why Haskell and not, for instance, SML? I guess SML is not necessarily pure, but it certainly a much simpler language than Haskell.
- tel 11y agoSML can do this well with embedded DSLs, but effect typing is a powerful tool for this idea.
- TazeTSchnitzel 11y agoSimplicity means power, that's the problem.
- Peaker 11y agoWithout purity, you have the power to express a lot more, burdening the reader. Purity lets you easily and arbitrarily constrain a function or program -- easing the burden for the reader who is free to assume so much more about what they read.