I think a code style guide for a development project is more important to potential contributors than whether the language is statically typed or not. Besides compile time checking for errors, however, another advantage of static languages is usually better IntelliSense/command-completion support. I can see how that would help someone working on a code base with which they were not previously familiar.
I would guess that there have been studies done on a number of these questions. If anyone has references to good studies, please share.
Jamal On 6/19/2011 4:55 AM, black ares wrote:
hmm, have you been in the development team of nvda? If not I propose you a simple exercise, download the source code of nvda, as a fully experienced developer but with out knowing nothing about that software and try to contribute something. See how long it takes. Conversely try to see how long it takes to do something new on a static typed language in a unknow software for you. More than that even in static typed languages it is harder to find the way if the code has not be written according to a best practice style of coding and design. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jamal Mazrui" <empower@xxxxxxxxx> To: <programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Cc: "John J. Boyer" <john.boyer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Sunday, June 19, 2011 4:01 AM Subject: Re: Java versus PythonNVDA probably would not exist but for the rapid development that the Python language enabled. Often, a dynamic language makes the difference as to whether an application is ever developed within a practical time frame. Jamal On 6/18/2011 8:56 PM, John J. Boyer wrote:Why are NVDA and Orca written in Python? With SWT they could be written inn Java. SWT has an accesibility package. In BrailleBlaster so far I have used a StyledText widget for the braille and Daisy views. It works with Jaws, Orca and VoiceOver right out of the box. people have been surprised that the Java Access Bridge is not needed. There are some accessibibility quirks, so we will probably supplement StyledText with some things from the accessability package. BrailleBlaster is run from a simple desktop shortcut to the jar file. For a screen reader you would want an exe. This could be done using JNI. In fact, I looked into this before realizing that it wasn't needed for BrailleBlaster. John On Sat, Jun 18, 2011 at 05:33:55PM -0400, Ken Perry wrote:This is true python was great but we had to ditch it because the python framework slowed what we were doing way to much so we have now went to a typed language but still use some scripting style language for lighter lifting. Ken -----Original Message----- From: programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of black ares Sent: Saturday, June 18, 2011 2:26 PM To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: Re: Java versus Python You are right john, developing "quick" also at least often means "developing for the moment", on the long run this gain in productivity is over passed by the mentenance heavy duty. ----- Original Message ----- From: "John J. Boyer"<john.boyer@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> To:<programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Saturday, June 18, 2011 3:45 PM Subject: Re: Java versus PythonOne reason we chose Java for BrailleBlaster is SWT. It really works as a cross-platform GUI builder. Once you get into a complex project the advantages of being able to develop something quickly in Python are much less. John On Sat, Jun 18, 2011 at 03:22:52PM +0300, black ares wrote:In fact it isn't a matter of preference. Best trained profesionals in this area choose the platform and technology best tailored to the project needs. So If I have a project that I can do better and quick in python than I will choose that langgage. If options are better in java I will choose it. Depends very much on the project requirements. ----- Original Message ----- From: "David Tseng"<davidct1209@xxxxxxxxx> To:<programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Saturday, June 18, 2011 5:15 AM Subject: Re: Java versus PythonI personally find arguments about programming languages much analogous to those seen in politics. Both sides have great points but tend to drive one another towards opposite extremes. Some camps are die hard dynamic language practitioners while others stick to strongly typed code. I will say that strongly typed languages have kind of won the battle historically. Most of the industry writes in C-styled languages like C/C++, java, etc. Lisp, still beloved by many, kind of lost. Python, as many have shown, works wonderfully and frees up coders to actually code, is still largely a wrapper on C. For those who want absolute performance, it's considered still an extra level of indirection that's not worth the productivity gain. I love python and its free-form style and the amount of progress you can make using it. Python excels at the rinse and repeat (compile, run, fix) style of coding. The few seconds you need to compile a C-styled language and run, you're already fixing the bug in python. You're not babied into writing object-oriented code ala java, but can independently mix in functional aspects if you wish. You can just as easily go OO if you want as well. On 6/17/11, Alex Hall<mehgcap@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:Programming is certainly a matter of preference in most situations. I would probably give up if the only option were php, since I really hate that language (no offense to anyone). Java is easy enough, but I agree that it feels bulky at times. I like Python's ease of use and readability, plus you can create executables with it, something that is difficult in java. Some people don't like that python is loosely typed, but I prefer saying: name=raw_input("Enter your name: ") to, if memory serves: name=new String(); in=new InputReader(); name=in.readLine(); or something along those lines. On 6/17/11, Littlefield, Tyler<tyler@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:I've used both. I really like python because it comes on most *nix systems. I also like Python because of it's flexability and versatility. Java is nice enough, but it feels big bulky and clunky to me. That and they seem to have some serious naming convention issues. Sometimes things are capitalized, sometimes they're not--.net makes more sense. On 6/17/2011 6:49 PM, John J. Boyer wrote:There has been a lot of discussion on the list lately about Python. Why is that?Personally i much prefer Java. Its syntx makes a lot more sense and it is just as powerful, if not more. A command-line build system like ant can take most of the hassle out of working with Java classes. personally, I prefer this to Eclipse. BrailleBlaster is written in Java. I am using openjdk-1.6, Eclipse SWT and Apache Ant. John-- Take care, Ty my website: http://tds-solutions.net my blog: http://tds-solutions.net/blog skype: st8amnd127 My programs don't have bugs; they're randomly added features! __________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind-- Have a great day, Alex (msg sent from GMail website) mehgcap@xxxxxxxxx; http://www.facebook.com/mehgcap __________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind__________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind__________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind-- John J. Boyer; President, Chief Software Developer Abilitiessoft, Inc. http://www.abilitiessoft.com Madison, Wisconsin USA Developing software for people with disabilities __________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind__________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind __________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind__________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind__________ View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind
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