From: Mathieu Bouchard <matju@...>
Date: 2004-03-04T01:25:44+09:00
Subject: Re: concerns about Proc,lambda,block


On Wed, 3 Mar 2004, Austin Ziegler wrote:

> I disagree with what you have suggested about Class/Module. I don't think
> that this is a harmful distinction, and actually makes the language easier
> to use. Without the Class/Module distinction, then there's little to
> distinguish Ruby from languages which have multiple inheritance; I prefer
> the conceptual clarity that mix-ins provide.

Well, I'm not of those who believe Ruby is not a multiple-inheritance
language; and I don't quite understand the urge to deny the existence of
its multiple-inheritance features. (such as "super" supporting
backtracking, as borrowed from Lisp)

About the conceptual clarity that Ruby's modules/#include bring, well,
I've tried explaining it to some computer scientists, and they try to make
sense of it, while they pause with a blank stare, and after a while they
yell "WHY THE HELL???" with a distressed expression on their faces...
which is roughly the same reaction I get from trying to explain
proc/block/call/yield/& distinctions to them.

________________________________________________________________
Mathieu Bouchard                       http://artengine.ca/matju