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Are Extensible Programming Languages Coming?

Posted by michael on from the tabs!-spaces!-tabs!-spaces! dept.

gManZboy writes "Programming writer and instructor Greg Wilson is proposing that the next generation of programming languages will use XML to store not only such things as formatting (so you can see indentation your way, and I can see it my way, via XSLT) but even programmatic entities -- like: <invoke-expr method="myMethod"><evaluate>record</evaluate></invoke-expr>. Wacky, but perhaps wacky enough to be possible?"

4 of 838 comments (clear)

  1. Extensible? by jawtheshark · · Score: 5, Insightful
    My programming languages were always extensible. Be it over procedures or functions, objects and inheritance, fuck even the good old programmable interrupts did the job! Programming languages don't limit, they enable you to do what you want.

    Look, I can understand XML to convey data.... but honestly, you don't need to use XML for everything under the sun. Proven old good methods work just fine, thank you very much.

    --
    Ahhh...the great dumpster continuum. Many a free computer will be found there. -- sowth (748135)
    1. Re:Extensible? by eln · · Score: 5, Insightful

      XML now is what OOP was 15 years ago: Useful for some things, but shoehorned into every possible application, whether it actually made any sense or not, and whether or not it made things easier or more difficult.

  2. Is this guy serious? by FyRE666 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ...programmatic entities -- like: record. Wacky, but perhaps wacky enough to be possible?
    Hopefully, no. Christ almighty, why is there this surge in interest for pointless layers of abstraction on top of the code? It seems some people are desperate to do anything to avoid actual implementation (work?), prefering to dance around the periphery of a project, adding needless fluff and speedbumps. Honestly, will the addition of XML markup in source code REALLY help to advance a project, make the code more readable or avoid bugs?

    --
    Code, Hardware, stuff like that.
  3. ASN.1 and XML by Anonymous+Cowherd+X · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Programs are written by humans and they should stay easily legible and comprehensive to humans. Going to such extremes as to use XML as the author of the article suggests would defeat that purpose, it's a common trap that people who get too deeply involved with something fall into - they want to make everything use the object of their obsession. I don't recall any ASN.1 zealots trying to push for something that extreme, but with XML there are more and more people who are pushing for XML to be where it should not.