From: Edward Diener Date: 2002-01-02T08:45:05+09:00 Subject: [ruby-talk:29997] Re: Python and Ruby: a comparison James Britt (rubydev) wrote: > >>-----Original Message----- >>From: ruby-talk-admin@ruby-lang.org >>[mailto:ruby-talk-admin@ruby-lang.org]On Behalf Of Edward Diener >>Sent: Sunday, December 30, 2001 10:42 PM >>To: ruby-talk ML; undisclosed-recipients: >>Subject: [ruby-talk:29810] Re: Python and Ruby: a comparison >> >> >>CLR is a lowest common denominator for language ideas which MS supports. >> > > Is it the lowest common denominator, or the highest common factor? > > I think I understand what point you're trying to make, but it > sounds as if interoperability is limited to the *least* each > language has in common, rather than the most. > Well Microsoft would say the highest common factor but that is not even true for the few languages which they chose to originally implement into ..NET. C# has functionality which VB .NET doesn't. The reality is that MS defined the common language elements and other languages must play to those ideas, in their .NET incarnation, to be interoperable, although they are allowed to implement their full syntax within unmanaged code ( which does not say that they will do that necessarily ). I understand MS's quandary but as a mostly C++ programmer, the .NET managed C++ is a dumbed down version of the language which might as well be called something else for all the realtionship it has with the C++ standard. If you like a programming language, as I expect people on this NG like Ruby, and you run into others who tell you that they program in that language, but what they really mean is the .NET subset of that language, it doesn't make for a pleasnt situation when you must work with those other programmers. My experience working as a consultant largely with C++ is that a large amount of supposedly C++ programmers are still using a vast subset of the language and many of them have been encouraged to do so by MS and VC++, which is probably the least standardized version of the language in existence. I shudder to think what will happen if I have to work with managed C++ .NET programmers.