4 ms·

That is just an algorithm, isn't it? I cant see how it would be simpler to implement in Lisp that Python. I suspect the issue is that a flight booking system i

by goto11 6y ago

That is just an algorithm, isn't it? I cant see how it would be simpler to implement in Lisp that Python. I suspect the issue is that a flight booking system is basically the only significant commercial system written in Lisp, which is why it is always dragged out in these discussions.

lispm 6y ago
The flight search was designed 20 years ago with the goal to disrupt mainframe-based flight search systems domain: Here is some background on that particular application: https://www.msri.org/people/members/sara/articles/airfares.pdf https://www.msri.org/people/members/sara/articles/airfares.p... http://www.paulgraham.com/carl.html http://www.paulgraham.com/carl.html > I suspect the issue is that a flight booking system is basically the only significant commercial system written in Lisp How would you know that?
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- goto11 6y ago
  The claim was that something which would take weeks in say Python would take minutes in Lisp. Then this flight search system is presented as evidence. I just don't see how it is any form of evidence for that rather extraordinary claim? It just shows it is possible to write complex software in Lisp, but I wasn't disputing that. I'm disputing the claim of 100 x productivity.
  - lispm 6y ago
    I was addressing your 'That is just an algorithm, isn't it?', in case you would be interested what that application is actually about. There was no general claim of 100x productivity. The commenter wrote: "I had a lisp master that did teach me that what had taken me weeks in c, c++ and python code he could do it in lisp in minutes" That was his personal impression, not a general claim. I can't also imagine how this could be a general claim.
srean 6y ago
Yes the sauce is in the algorithm and its a non-trivial one. Its a NP hard problem of searching through a combinatorial explosion of possible configuration. I am not aware of any other product that comes close to what ITA offered. The feature of Lisp that was heavily used in the code was the use of macros and metaprogramming. These are the kinds of problems were lisp excels. ITA made use of the fact that Lisp is a programmable programming language and they adapted programming language to the domain.

by goto11 6y ago

lispm 6y ago

The flight search was designed 20 years ago with the goal to disrupt mainframe-based flight search systems domain: Here is some background on that particular application: https://www.msri.org/people/members/sara/articles/airfares.pdf https://www.msri.org/people/members/sara/articles/airfares.p... http://www.paulgraham.com/carl.html http://www.paulgraham.com/carl.html > I suspect the issue is that a flight booking system is basically the only significant commercial system written in Lisp How would you know that?

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
goto11 6y ago
The claim was that something which would take weeks in say Python would take minutes in Lisp. Then this flight search system is presented as evidence. I just don't see how it is any form of evidence for that rather extraordinary claim? It just shows it is possible to write complex software in Lisp, but I wasn't disputing that. I'm disputing the claim of 100 x productivity.
- lispm 6y ago
  I was addressing your 'That is just an algorithm, isn't it?', in case you would be interested what that application is actually about. There was no general claim of 100x productivity. The commenter wrote: "I had a lisp master that did teach me that what had taken me weeks in c, c++ and python code he could do it in lisp in minutes" That was his personal impression, not a general claim. I can't also imagine how this could be a general claim.

srean 6y ago

Yes the sauce is in the algorithm and its a non-trivial one. Its a NP hard problem of searching through a combinatorial explosion of possible configuration. I am not aware of any other product that comes close to what ITA offered. The feature of Lisp that was heavily used in the code was the use of macros and metaprogramming. These are the kinds of problems were lisp excels. ITA made use of the fact that Lisp is a programmable programming language and they adapted programming language to the domain.