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Inside Microsoft's New F# Language

Posted by michael on from the e-flat dept.

robyn217 writes "There's a new language being formed in the bowels of Microsoft. Recently I got word that the language F# (pronounced F Sharp) is nearing workable stages at Microsoft Research. So, I went in for a look-see. What I found was an interesting blend of imperative (Java, C#) and functional languages(it's ML-based, too!). It looks pretty enticing to me from a computer science perspective, but I'm not sure it would fly in the professional market. I can see the ease of development that a language loosely based on ML would bring, but I can't see coders switching over in droves since it's a tough learning curve." Our previous story on F#.

3 of 606 comments (clear)

  1. I like the idea by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    My first year CS classes were taught in ML. It's a very potent language. I especially liked the type inference system. What other languages do in templates comes naturally in ML. Our CS prof gave us an example of Quicksort in 3 lines of readable code. As an academic language ML has problems interfacing with real life systems. OcaML was a step in the right direction and MS is building F# on it. I'll certainly try this one.

  2. Haskell next? by axxackall · · Score: 5, Informative
    While I like ML (whole family) so much more than any imperative legacy (Java, C++, C, Perl), I see the main problem that any ML has with for modern RAD and with scripting is its static typing. And that's why I like (more than ML) Haskell - it's dynamically typed and thus it's much more appropriate both for operating scripting and for big app RAD.

    Until today, both ML and Haskell had a common problem: a lack of commercial and real world interest in it and therefore a lack of real-world libraries and supporting frameworks. But now things are going to be changed.

    First Ericson came with Erlang, an excelent essence of FP, LP, scripting and networking. Now M$ (I know - evil, but anyway) came with F# bringing OCaml to the real world saving from being forgotten somewhere in Inria.

    What next? I think that would be Haskell, the language even more suprior to ML, with already OOP, Parallel and Cuncurrent extensions. Also I like its Functional-Logical dialect - Curry. But who will bring it to the real world? IBM?

    --

    Less is more !
    1. Re:Haskell next? by KieranElby · · Score: 5, Informative

      I wouldn't bet against Microsoft bringing Haskell to the real world - their research department (which would put many universities to shame) has some top Haskell people, such as Simon Peyton Jones.
      There's some interesting papers by him over here.