From: Ryan Tarpine <rtarpine@...>
Date: 2001-08-22T21:43:18+09:00
Subject: [ruby-talk:20110] Re: [patch] block memory allocation scheme - bmalloc

Renaud HEBERT wrote:

> MikkelFJ wrote:
> []
>> I believe OCaml has an interesting generational, incremental garbage
>> collector www.ocaml.org , but  I
>> haven't look at it in detail.
> 
> OFF-TOPIC, mode dream on
> I'm drooling: OCaml has nearly the speed of raw C..
> 
> I wish that Ruby could be as fast as OCaml because I really can't stand
> the syntax of OCaml.. (No, I don't want to start a flamewar this is just
> my opinion, your mileage may vary of course).
> 
> I've read here about some common back-end for Perl/Python/Ruby, the
> project Parrot I think.
> 
> Given that OCaml is one of the fastest interpreted language, I'm
> wondering if some things could not be reused from this project for the
> back-end at least..
> 

I am new to both OCaml and Ruby, so correct me if I'm wrong, but as far far 
as I know one of the reasons OCaml is so fast is because of the strong type 
checking.  Making a function that just adds one to the argument (function x 
-> x + 1) automatically works only with integers.  Not even floats because 
they use the "+." operand.  OCaml minimizes run-time type checking, which 
of course in Ruby is not possible because the object's methods must be 
queried and called.  I doubt Ruby will ever reach such speeds.  But I'm 
sure it will at least surpass Perl soon 

-- 
Ryan Tarpine, rtarpine@hotmail.com
"Technology is a queer thing.  It brings you great gifts in one hand, and 
it stabs you in the back with the other."
         -- C.P. Snow