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For sure. If there are two flavors of OOP: the Imperative OOP we're familiar with (Ruby, Java, Python, etc.) and the Message oriented variety that Alan Kay desc

For sure. If there are two flavors of OOP: the Imperative OOP we're familiar with (Ruby, Java, Python, etc.) and the Message oriented variety that Alan Kay described, then Elixir/Erlang are more the Message Oriented flavor. While you can write either flavor in most languages (even Elixir if you abuse ETS), concurrency's requirements for immutability and run-time support start becoming distinguishing factors.

dnautics 7y ago
I think actually Ruby is Alan Kay style but with an imperative surface implementation, itonically
- overgard 7y ago
  Kinda. I think what Ruby is missing is how minimalist Smalltalk is and how many of the primitives in Smalltalk are implemented in itself. To give you an example of what I'm talking about, in Smalltalk an if statement is implemented by sending a message to a boolean, like: someBool ifTrue: [ "some block to execute" ]. In that context, either the "True" object receives the message and executes the block, or the "False" object receives the message and doesn't execute it. (Or even some user defined object that just happens to have an ifTrue: message handler). (Sorry I might be a little off on the syntax and exact details, my Smalltalk is rusty) Loops and such are also similar. Granted most of these things probably end up being implemented in native code on a practical level for performance, but conceptually it's a very small language. Most of the standard library and IDE is written in itself. Ruby definitely has a lot of flexibility, but it also has way more built-ins and much more separation between "interpreter code" and "user code" I think this is what people are missing when they bring up the point that messages and method calls seem very similar. In a practical sense yes, but the smalltalk style message system is more about messages being a fundamental building block of the entire system.
  - dragonwriter 7y ago
    > Loops and such are also similar. While “if” doesn't work that way in Ruby, loops do (there is a for..in statement, but it's syntax sugar for a call to #each, and not idiomatic to use it anyway.) Python does a lot of that; putting loosely C-style syntax as sugar around method calls (which themselves support more general message passing patterns than Java-style method calls.)
dragonwriter 7y ago
There's three main flavors I see: Synchronous method calling as limited message passing; synchronous method calling as general message passing, and asynchronous message passing. Java and C++ and most static class-oriented OO languages are in th first group. Ruby and Smalltalk (and JS, which isn't, barring more recent developments, class oriented OO, bit is still OO) and some other dynamic OO languages are in the second group. Elixir/Erlang are in the third group. Message passing is inherently an imperative idiom (whether synchronous or not), even though it may show up in languages that are largely declarative rather than imperative outside of message handling.
- dnautics 7y ago
  Do C++ and java actually pass messages? Java I have no clue, but I thought calling a member function in c++ is looking up a function pointer in a table or a vtable if inherited virtual.
  - dragonwriter 7y ago
    > Do C++ and java actually pass messages? Not really, “a limited echo of message passing” would have probably been more accurate than limited message passing: C++ and Java Ivor a form of OO inspired by Smalltalk-style message passing but are implemented in a way which provides something much more limited.

dnautics 7y ago

I think actually Ruby is Alan Kay style but with an imperative surface implementation, itonically

overgard 7y ago
Kinda. I think what Ruby is missing is how minimalist Smalltalk is and how many of the primitives in Smalltalk are implemented in itself. To give you an example of what I'm talking about, in Smalltalk an if statement is implemented by sending a message to a boolean, like: someBool ifTrue: [ "some block to execute" ]. In that context, either the "True" object receives the message and executes the block, or the "False" object receives the message and doesn't execute it. (Or even some user defined object that just happens to have an ifTrue: message handler). (Sorry I might be a little off on the syntax and exact details, my Smalltalk is rusty) Loops and such are also similar. Granted most of these things probably end up being implemented in native code on a practical level for performance, but conceptually it's a very small language. Most of the standard library and IDE is written in itself. Ruby definitely has a lot of flexibility, but it also has way more built-ins and much more separation between "interpreter code" and "user code" I think this is what people are missing when they bring up the point that messages and method calls seem very similar. In a practical sense yes, but the smalltalk style message system is more about messages being a fundamental building block of the entire system.
- dragonwriter 7y ago
  > Loops and such are also similar. While “if” doesn't work that way in Ruby, loops do (there is a for..in statement, but it's syntax sugar for a call to #each, and not idiomatic to use it anyway.) Python does a lot of that; putting loosely C-style syntax as sugar around method calls (which themselves support more general message passing patterns than Java-style method calls.)

dragonwriter 7y ago

There's three main flavors I see: Synchronous method calling as limited message passing; synchronous method calling as general message passing, and asynchronous message passing. Java and C++ and most static class-oriented OO languages are in th first group. Ruby and Smalltalk (and JS, which isn't, barring more recent developments, class oriented OO, bit is still OO) and some other dynamic OO languages are in the second group. Elixir/Erlang are in the third group. Message passing is inherently an imperative idiom (whether synchronous or not), even though it may show up in languages that are largely declarative rather than imperative outside of message handling.

dnautics 7y ago
Do C++ and java actually pass messages? Java I have no clue, but I thought calling a member function in c++ is looking up a function pointer in a table or a vtable if inherited virtual.
- dragonwriter 7y ago
  > Do C++ and java actually pass messages? Not really, “a limited echo of message passing” would have probably been more accurate than limited message passing: C++ and Java Ivor a form of OO inspired by Smalltalk-style message passing but are implemented in a way which provides something much more limited.