From: Ned Konz <ned@...>
Date: 2001-08-24T01:44:56+09:00
Subject: [ruby-talk:20190] Re: DB

On Thursday 23 August 2001 01:40 am, you wrote:
> Hello!
>
> What about database support? I have seen the DB extension modules...
> Why not include Table as built-in type? And implement embedded SQL?
> Neither Perl nor Python do have such a type.

There is little if any advantage to making non-primitive built-in types in 
Ruby, since it's so easy to extend the language by adding classes written in 
Ruby or C.

And changing the syntax of the language itself to support something like 
embedded SQL would be a nightmare. You already have here documents and other 
ways of expressing strings; combined with a reasonable set of database 
classes, this could be quite easy.

Or you could make a source filter in Ruby that would eat your own syntax and 
produce real Ruby. Why bother changing the language itself for something that 
is of peripheral and limited interest to a few people?

-- 
Ned Konz
currently: Stanwood, WA
email:     ned@bike-nomad.com
homepage:  http://bike-nomad.com