Introducing IronPython: Code Magazine Article
Code Magazine has published an article on IronPython by the IronPython Program Manager: Harry Pierson.
The article is an introduction to Python and IronPython, including the history of IronPython and some examples of Python. It is aimed at C# and VB.NET developers.
Unfortunately the second page of the article is behind a paywall, but it looks like a great article if you have access.
Some highlights.
On block structure by indentation (lightweight syntax - nice):
"Python’s significant whitespace is one of those things developers tend to either love or hate. However, the use of significant whitespace does appear to becoming more popular. Both Boo and Cobra, two open source .NET languages, use a Python-inspired syntax, including significant whitespace. Furthermore, Microsoft’s new F# language includes an optional lightweight syntax mode that makes indentation significant, just like Python."
On dynamic typing:
"In any system of significant scale, there are essentially an infinite number of ways the application can be wrong. Type safe languages eliminate one of this infinite number of ways. The overwhelming majority of errors and bugs you might make when developing your system won’t be caught by a static type language compiler. If they could, then any application that compiled would automatically be bug free! You need some other mechanism to catch these other errors, typically automated unit tests. So while it’s true that static types do provide a safety net, it’s just not a very big one."
The article is an introduction to Python and IronPython, including the history of IronPython and some examples of Python. It is aimed at C# and VB.NET developers.
Unfortunately the second page of the article is behind a paywall, but it looks like a great article if you have access.
Some highlights.
On block structure by indentation (lightweight syntax - nice):
"Python’s significant whitespace is one of those things developers tend to either love or hate. However, the use of significant whitespace does appear to becoming more popular. Both Boo and Cobra, two open source .NET languages, use a Python-inspired syntax, including significant whitespace. Furthermore, Microsoft’s new F# language includes an optional lightweight syntax mode that makes indentation significant, just like Python."
On dynamic typing:
"In any system of significant scale, there are essentially an infinite number of ways the application can be wrong. Type safe languages eliminate one of this infinite number of ways. The overwhelming majority of errors and bugs you might make when developing your system won’t be caught by a static type language compiler. If they could, then any application that compiled would automatically be bug free! You need some other mechanism to catch these other errors, typically automated unit tests. So while it’s true that static types do provide a safety net, it’s just not a very big one."
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