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Postings from May 2001
Simon Cozens writes: >> However, we are not designing Perl 5. This gets to a theme that is turning into more and more of an irritant in following (and very occasionally participating) in the ongoing discussion here. There seems to be a sense among some participants that certain issues are Off Limits. I got quite a bit of static from my comments about the desirability of retaining the . concatenation operator. In any process like this, certainly some issues have reached a preliminary resolution before they are opened for public discussion, others are relatively undecided, and still others have two or more competing approaches that need to be resolved. It strikes me as counterproductive to say, "Oh, that's ALREADY been decided" (with the distinct undertone of "by the way please note how out of touch you are"), or "That's fine but we're not designing Perl 5 here" (with the apparent inference that concerns about syntax and efficiency have been trumped by the onrushing demands of the various new schemata being proposed). Especially in cases where Larry hasn't even addressed the specifics yet. This is not conducive to open discussion and gaining the widest review and consideration for all the complex/interactive aspects of a language development process. No doubt Larry will reject many of our notions out of hand, for a variety of reasons, but at the same time I note that he typically provides a precis and justification for those as they come along. Remember, A2 has been out for less than a week. Those who see their role as shepherding this process along by avoiding "things already decided" risk losing the input and involvement of those with practical concerns. I trust Larry and the others who are going to end up coding all this stuff to take all input and assess it accordingly. Now perhaps there would be some use for a process like the evidentiary and procedural rules of court. In a trial, certain things are stipulated as facts and not further discussed. Other things are put off the record as irrelevant or biased and are not included in the final decision. And so on. But I don't think we need to be that hypertechnical about this. While a word to the wise about nearly-finalized decisions ought to be sufficient, remember that none of us are mind readers, and if we wish to have the widest range of appropriate input, it is well to recognize that not everyone here is a core Perl developer. out, phred