4 ms·

I think the OP perhaps wants to look at Apple Script?

by justinator 8y ago

jandrese 8y ago
The OP wants a modernized COBOL.
- Vinnl 8y ago
  In fact, that's what they say after clicking the buttons at the bottom - which are actually part of the article.
  - reitanqild 8y ago
    Actually not if one reads carefully.
    - Vinnl 8y ago
      Well all right, they don't really want COBOL - they're saying that that's what they were describing as something they wanted. But my point was primarily that people probably missed that they had to click the buttons to read that.
- qu4z-2 8y ago
  As far as I can tell, the OP wants people to stop inventing languages and "just write good code". They're deliberately describing COBOL as exciting, new and modern to make their point.
jacobolus 8y ago
Yes, this proposal is basically AppleScript. AppleScript is (relatively) easy for non-programmers to read and understand, because it is built on natural language. Unfortunately AppleScript is a huge pain to write, because as a programming language it is still quite strict about what type of syntax it will accept. It also is fairly limited, because speccing a natural language programming vocabulary/grammar gets increasingly difficult as you start adding features. As a result even the best AppleScript programs are not concise at all, with limited use of abstraction. Most AppleScript programs are cobbled together by copy/pasting code found on the internet, and are full of bugs.
- MauranKilom 8y ago
  In my experience, the problem people have with learning programming is not syntax or abstraction - it's thinking like the abstract machine. Or in other words, understanding that having an array and a loop in your code isn't enough to make the computer understand and do what you want. Basically, the thing that the PB&J exact instructions challenge teaches.
  - fouc 8y ago
    It's interesting you mention an array and a loop, because those can be separate abstractions too. no need to think about loops: array.each {|x| puts x} need think about loops: for i in 0...array.length do puts array[i] end
    - kbp 8y ago
      The first example saves you from thinking about indexing; arrays and loops are relevant in both.

I think the OP perhaps wants to look at Apple Script?

jandrese 8y ago

The OP wants a modernized COBOL.

Vinnl 8y ago
In fact, that's what they say after clicking the buttons at the bottom - which are actually part of the article.
- reitanqild 8y ago
  Actually not if one reads carefully.
  - Vinnl 8y ago
    Well all right, they don't really want COBOL - they're saying that that's what they were describing as something they wanted. But my point was primarily that people probably missed that they had to click the buttons to read that.
qu4z-2 8y ago
As far as I can tell, the OP wants people to stop inventing languages and "just write good code". They're deliberately describing COBOL as exciting, new and modern to make their point.

jacobolus 8y ago

Yes, this proposal is basically AppleScript. AppleScript is (relatively) easy for non-programmers to read and understand, because it is built on natural language. Unfortunately AppleScript is a huge pain to write, because as a programming language it is still quite strict about what type of syntax it will accept. It also is fairly limited, because speccing a natural language programming vocabulary/grammar gets increasingly difficult as you start adding features. As a result even the best AppleScript programs are not concise at all, with limited use of abstraction. Most AppleScript programs are cobbled together by copy/pasting code found on the internet, and are full of bugs.

MauranKilom 8y ago
In my experience, the problem people have with learning programming is not syntax or abstraction - it's thinking like the abstract machine. Or in other words, understanding that having an array and a loop in your code isn't enough to make the computer understand and do what you want. Basically, the thing that the PB&J exact instructions challenge teaches.
- fouc 8y ago
  It's interesting you mention an array and a loop, because those can be separate abstractions too. no need to think about loops: array.each {|x| puts x} need think about loops: for i in 0...array.length do puts array[i] end
  - kbp 8y ago
    The first example saves you from thinking about indexing; arrays and loops are relevant in both.