Well, in terms of whether the example is a well-posed question, a networked window system isn't too different from the WWW, which as we know by now works pretty

Well, in terms of whether the example is a well-posed question, a networked window system isn't too different from the WWW, which as we know by now works pretty flawlessly. Perhaps the key contrast here is between the tendency toward static mathematical perfection of the APL family and the notion of dynamic languages for building systems that Alan Kay et al would propose. "APL is like a beautiful diamond - flawless, beautifully symmetrical. But you can’t add anything to it. If you try to glue on another diamond, you don’t get a bigger diamond." --Joel Moses There's a talk by Ian Piumarta that tries to get to the core of what the VPRI guys feel is important. I'm not sure about it but it seems worth mentioning in this context: Ian Piumarta "Building Your Own Dynamic Language" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn7kTPbW6QQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cn7kTPbW6QQ Also, this: https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aldrich/papers/objects-essay.pdf https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aldrich/papers/objects-essay.pdf