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From: Rob Warnock on 19 Apr 2010 07:13
Tim Bradshaw <tfb(a)tfeb.org> wrote:
+---------------
| Robert Dodier said:
| > Well, if you're interested, give Maxima a try ---
|
| Is Maxima essentially the same thing as Macsyma?
+---------------

Essentially, though at this point it might be better to call
it a direct descendant. See the 3rd & 4th paragraphs here:

http://maxima.sourceforge.net/


-Rob

-----
Rob Warnock <rpw3(a)rpw3.org>
627 26th Avenue <URL:http://rpw3.org/>
San Mateo, CA 94403 (650)572-2607

From: Tim Bradshaw on 19 Apr 2010 09:32
On 2010-04-19 14:06:31 +0100, grucidipo said:

> I think Mathematica is not perfect (as you well know :), but there is
> something very valuable in it, some of the algorithms are very hard to
> program, many of them are done by researchers in the front edge of
> knowledge.

I agree there is a lot there. I could even put up with the deficienies
of the language (in fact I do), but the deficient language combined
with the endless boastfulness of the documentation is going a bit far.

From: His kennyness on 20 Apr 2010 08:49
Tim Bradshaw wrote:
> On 2010-04-19 14:06:31 +0100, grucidipo said:
>
>> I think Mathematica is not perfect (as you well know :), but there is
>> something very valuable in it, some of the algorithms are very hard to
>> program, many of them are done by researchers in the front edge of
>> knowledge.
>
> I agree there is a lot there. I could even put up with the deficienies
> of the language (in fact I do), but the deficient language combined with
> the endless boastfulness of the documentation is going a bit far.
>

What you are missing is that Mathematica is a great new /kind/ of
language per se embodied in, yes, a deficient language instance. So
while the language has flaws, the /kind/ of language is a corker and
only small minds worry about things when there are /kinds/ of things to
create.

hth,kenneth
From: Pillsy on 20 Apr 2010 10:08
On Apr 20, 8:49 am, His kennyness <kentil...(a)gmail.com> wrote:
[...]
> So while the language has flaws, the /kind/ of language is a corker
> and only small minds worry about things when there are /kinds/ of
> things to create.

Who are you, and what did you do with the kenny who used to harangue
us about not actually writing applications?

Because when it comes to actually writing applications in Mathematica,
you spend most of your time using the language's powerful
metaprogramming and reflection capabilities to work around the legion
of braindamaged misfeatures it arrays against you. It's a great fancy
desk calculator, and the language itself is adequate if you just need
to script a fancy desk calculator, but once you move beyond that sort
of scripting, the pain sets in.

Cheers,
Pillsy
From: His kennyness on 20 Apr 2010 10:18
Pillsy wrote:
> On Apr 20, 8:49 am, His kennyness <kentil...(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> [...]
>> So while the language has flaws, the /kind/ of language is a corker
>> and only small minds worry about things when there are /kinds/ of
>> things to create.
>
> Who are you, and what did you do with the kenny who used to harangue
> us about not actually writing applications?

He's busy playing softball in an over-fifty league, I'm filling in.

>
> Because when it comes to actually writing applications in Mathematica,
> you spend most of your time using the language's powerful
> metaprogramming and reflection capabilities to work around the legion
> of braindamaged misfeatures it arrays against you. It's a great fancy
> desk calculator, and the language itself is adequate if you just need
> to script a fancy desk calculator, but once you move beyond that sort
> of scripting, the pain sets in.

I honestly cannot decide if you were praising Mathematica or burying it.
Cool.

It sounds like git, a powerful tool with absolutely no excuse for being
as unusable as it is other than that it's author thinks they are too
smart to worry about usability when in fact the only real hard part in
something like what they create is making them usable.

kt
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