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professional clojure programmer here, not a myth, DSLs often abstract in the wrong direction and by departing from a language of values and function composition

professional clojure programmer here, not a myth, DSLs often abstract in the wrong direction and by departing from a language of values and function composition (eg by introducing macros) a bad dsl in fact becomes a barrier to good abstraction. Consider any DSL for html generation that predates React.js; react isn’t even a DSL at all, react is values and functions, so there’s all this good innovation happening around React that was all dead ends on 100% of pre-React DSLs.

flavio81 9y ago
>a bad dsl in fact becomes a barrier to good abstraction. Consider any DSL for html generation that predates React.js; react isn’t even a DSL at all, react is values and functions React isn't a DSL; React includes a DSL for html generation. And by the way, we have had such a thing in Lisp since the existence of HTML. Tons of libraries that allow you to inline HTML into your code.
flavio81 9y ago
>and by departing from a language of values and function composition (eg by introducing macros) You are assuming that a DSL is done by using macros; which is incorrect; in Lisp you can easily create your own DSL using plain functions as well.
- kornish 9y ago
  Sounds like maybe we're talking past each other. Would you mind clarifying how you're defining a DSL?
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deleted 9y ago
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