4 ms·

"According to many developers, it is the most original new face in computer languages since Bjarne Stroustrup developed C++ in the early 1980's." Uh, isn't F#

by Fixnum 17y ago

"According to many developers, it is the most original new face in computer languages since Bjarne Stroustrup developed C++ in the early 1980's." Uh, isn't F# mostly a derivative of OCaml (and Haskell)?

gnosis 17y ago
Yes. I'd much rather read an interview with Xavier Leroy, inventor of OCaml (which F# is basically a Microsoft appropriation of). Kind of ironic, but quite typical, that the people who really deserve the credit get passed over in favor of imitators.
lssndrdn 17y ago
It is a derivative of oCaml and Haskell, but it's also a multi-paradigm language that borrows from C# and Python. It has elements of imperative and OO. I don't know if it really is "the most original new face", and could be critized for trying to bring too many things into one, but it's not just a clone of Haskell or OCaml. [edited typo]
- gnosis 17y ago
  OCaml is also a multi-paradigm language, in which you can program in imperative, functional, and object-oriented styles. Sorry, but F# basically is OCaml. F# code can even be compiled in an OCaml compiler, often without modification. The only credit I'll give Microsoft here is in not picking a shitty technology to copy, like they usually do (like Java for C# or VMS for NT).
  - tedunangst 17y ago
    "F# code can even be compiled in an OCaml compiler, often without modification." I think you have that backwards. The #light syntax preferred by F# is not compatible with ocaml. ocaml and the non light syntax are about the same though.
  - gaius 17y ago
    Why do you say VMS is "shitty"? Linux is 15-20 years behind it on clustering alone...
- logicalmind 17y ago
  One of the major benefits of F# is that it is .NET. This allows companies who already have investments in .NET (microsoft technologies) to explore a functional language in a realistic way. I think F# has a good chance of bringing functional programming to the mainstream.
lolcraft 17y ago
And C++ was a derivative of C and Simula. Apparently pragmatism is (and has been for a while) the new originality.

by Fixnum 17y ago

gnosis 17y ago

Yes. I'd much rather read an interview with Xavier Leroy, inventor of OCaml (which F# is basically a Microsoft appropriation of). Kind of ironic, but quite typical, that the people who really deserve the credit get passed over in favor of imitators.

lssndrdn 17y ago

It is a derivative of oCaml and Haskell, but it's also a multi-paradigm language that borrows from C# and Python. It has elements of imperative and OO. I don't know if it really is "the most original new face", and could be critized for trying to bring too many things into one, but it's not just a clone of Haskell or OCaml. [edited typo]

gnosis 17y ago
OCaml is also a multi-paradigm language, in which you can program in imperative, functional, and object-oriented styles. Sorry, but F# basically is OCaml. F# code can even be compiled in an OCaml compiler, often without modification. The only credit I'll give Microsoft here is in not picking a shitty technology to copy, like they usually do (like Java for C# or VMS for NT).
- tedunangst 17y ago
  "F# code can even be compiled in an OCaml compiler, often without modification." I think you have that backwards. The #light syntax preferred by F# is not compatible with ocaml. ocaml and the non light syntax are about the same though.
- gaius 17y ago
  Why do you say VMS is "shitty"? Linux is 15-20 years behind it on clustering alone...
logicalmind 17y ago
One of the major benefits of F# is that it is .NET. This allows companies who already have investments in .NET (microsoft technologies) to explore a functional language in a realistic way. I think F# has a good chance of bringing functional programming to the mainstream.

lolcraft 17y ago

And C++ was a derivative of C and Simula. Apparently pragmatism is (and has been for a while) the new originality.