[ABE.pm] So...

[Ricardo SIGNES]

* Faber Fedor <faber at linuxnj.com> [2004-10-21T23:19:43]
> What are your views on Perl 6?
> 
> I've read a few of the early Apocalypses and, quite frankly, they were
> over my head.

Perl 6 is a major improvement, in a lot of ways.  It provides better
support for objects.  It has many higher-order language features that
are not commonly available in other popular languages.  It fixes many of
Perl 5's limitations and makes it even easier to write even less code
that does even more.  (I could expound on some of these, but the
Apocalypses do it better.  If they're to mind-blowing, look for the
Synopses or Exegeses.)

Perl 6 is a good improvement to the language.  It just has one major
problem: it is a hypothetical language that does not exist.

It has been years since the project began, and it will be years before
an alpha-quality p6 interpreter exists.  (Parrot has been a nice
by-product, though!)  Until then, spending too much time thinking about
p6 is a waste, like learning to speak Lojban or how to play zero-g
basketball.

> I've heard that Perl 6 will break Perl 5, i.e. everything will have to
> be re-writen (sp?) to work with P6.

No, Perl 6 will be able to interpret Perl 5.  However, they are not
compatible languages.  That is: the p6 interpreter will know how to
interpret p5, but you won't be able to take your crufty old p5 program
and add a few lines of Perl 6 to it.  If you want to move to Perl 6, you
will need to move to Perl 6.  You can't just stick a hyperoperator in
the middle of an old-style sub (except for the cases where you can).

-- 
rjbs
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