6 ms·

I'm looking at Prog1.px et. al. If you format your Lisp code this way, the Lisp community is not likely to take your project very seriously.

ggchappell 15y ago
I suspect you're missing the point. He's writing Algol-ish code using Lisp syntax/data structures. The formatting is to emphasize this fact. Thus, if I understand correctly, he wants to allow us to write & think about the code much as we might handle C code, while still having Lisp-style code-as-data power & flexibility available to us. Or maybe not. Just guessing.
- fusiongyro 15y ago
  I'm actually making a prediction, and not a judgement. Nobody would say I'm a member of the Lisp community, whatever that might mean. But I have seen people get landed on pretty viciously for this kind of formatting before, and if you want participation from a community you should abide the community's standards, even if they are irrational. Even if the point is to write Algolish code, formatting it like this is likely to earn scorn rather than appreciation.
  - gliese1337 15y ago
    On the other hand, if you want participation from the Algol-descendant community, who frequently scorn the Lisp community's formatting, that may be exactly the right decision to make to get them familiar with Lisp-like syntax and worry about teaching them the more standard Lisp-community formatting conventions later.
    - fusiongyro 15y ago
      That's a really good point.
  - jacquesm 15y ago
    > and if you want participation from a community you should abide the community's standards, even if they are irrational. I don't think he's going to get much participation from the lisp community, but then again, everybody else is a much bigger community. So who knows, maybe the power of lisp combined with a non-lispy syntax is a balloon that can fly.
    - juliangamble 15y ago
      > So who knows, maybe the power of lisp combined with a non-lispy syntax is a balloon that can fly. Sounds like Apple's old language Dylan, and perhaps the Julia language: http://www.johnmyleswhite.com/notebook/2012/03/31/julia-i-love-you/ http://www.johnmyleswhite.com/notebook/2012/03/31/julia-i-lo...
- rogcg 15y ago
  You are totally right! That's what I meant!
wjbr 15y ago
If you add significant white space while keeping the prefix notation, it kinda looks like python. https://gist.github.com/2401588 https://gist.github.com/2401588
- fusiongyro 15y ago
  This has been noted before. I have seen a couple proposals to add significant whitespace to Scheme which I can't remember the details for offhand, and I believe was also the basis for the Pliant language's syntax.
  - roryokane 15y ago
    One such proposal that I like is "sweet-expressions" at http://www.dwheeler.com/readable/ http://www.dwheeler.com/readable/. That page also has a rudimentary set of implementations for some Lisp dialects, including Scheme. It's too bad that new Lisp dialects never seem to take notice of these features. Also, quick links for others looking for Pliant: Pliant syntax docs: http://hc.fullpliant.org/doc/language/syntax http://hc.fullpliant.org/doc/language/syntax Pliant language docs: http://hc.fullpliant.org/doc/ http://hc.fullpliant.org/doc/
- rogcg 15y ago
  I liked your demonstration. A mix of python and Lisp syntax doesn't sound bad.

ggchappell 15y ago

I suspect you're missing the point. He's writing Algol-ish code using Lisp syntax/data structures. The formatting is to emphasize this fact. Thus, if I understand correctly, he wants to allow us to write & think about the code much as we might handle C code, while still having Lisp-style code-as-data power & flexibility available to us. Or maybe not. Just guessing.

fusiongyro 15y ago
I'm actually making a prediction, and not a judgement. Nobody would say I'm a member of the Lisp community, whatever that might mean. But I have seen people get landed on pretty viciously for this kind of formatting before, and if you want participation from a community you should abide the community's standards, even if they are irrational. Even if the point is to write Algolish code, formatting it like this is likely to earn scorn rather than appreciation.
- gliese1337 15y ago
  On the other hand, if you want participation from the Algol-descendant community, who frequently scorn the Lisp community's formatting, that may be exactly the right decision to make to get them familiar with Lisp-like syntax and worry about teaching them the more standard Lisp-community formatting conventions later.
  - fusiongyro 15y ago
    That's a really good point.
- jacquesm 15y ago
  > and if you want participation from a community you should abide the community's standards, even if they are irrational. I don't think he's going to get much participation from the lisp community, but then again, everybody else is a much bigger community. So who knows, maybe the power of lisp combined with a non-lispy syntax is a balloon that can fly.
  - juliangamble 15y ago
    > So who knows, maybe the power of lisp combined with a non-lispy syntax is a balloon that can fly. Sounds like Apple's old language Dylan, and perhaps the Julia language: http://www.johnmyleswhite.com/notebook/2012/03/31/julia-i-love-you/ http://www.johnmyleswhite.com/notebook/2012/03/31/julia-i-lo...
rogcg 15y ago
You are totally right! That's what I meant!

wjbr 15y ago

If you add significant white space while keeping the prefix notation, it kinda looks like python. https://gist.github.com/2401588 https://gist.github.com/2401588

fusiongyro 15y ago
This has been noted before. I have seen a couple proposals to add significant whitespace to Scheme which I can't remember the details for offhand, and I believe was also the basis for the Pliant language's syntax.
- roryokane 15y ago
  One such proposal that I like is "sweet-expressions" at http://www.dwheeler.com/readable/ http://www.dwheeler.com/readable/. That page also has a rudimentary set of implementations for some Lisp dialects, including Scheme. It's too bad that new Lisp dialects never seem to take notice of these features. Also, quick links for others looking for Pliant: Pliant syntax docs: http://hc.fullpliant.org/doc/language/syntax http://hc.fullpliant.org/doc/language/syntax Pliant language docs: http://hc.fullpliant.org/doc/ http://hc.fullpliant.org/doc/
rogcg 15y ago
I liked your demonstration. A mix of python and Lisp syntax doesn't sound bad.