Python 2.5 includes a with syntax (it’s nothing like javascript’s “with”) that helps work with objects that represent resources that need to be explicitly released. Loads of those around, from files to network connections to database sets and queries. Good. Basically, you write: with open(“x.txt”) as f: data = f.read() do something with data instead [...]
In the span of the past 2 weeks, I’ve tried to pick up both GWT and TurboGears while on the clock for a project that needs to be done yesterday. Not much time to fiddle about, in other words. TurboGears failed horribly and has been left by the wayside. GWT, on the other hand, is [...]
Joel reviews Beyond Java here. For those not in the know, Beyond Java is a book that eschews java in favour of the recently popular scripting languages (python, ruby, you know ‘em). Joel first rightly explains that in many ways programming is just plain hard, and no magic bullet exists that will ever solve that [...]
Well, after some persistence I can participate at the Dutch Programming Championship as a spectator (too old to join as contestant ). I’ve worked out an interesting observation during the university-level round held 2 weeks ago. First some background: The ICPC model (used during the whole lot from uni-level to country-level to europe-level to world-level) [...]
Due to popular demand, a redux explanation of why CICE (the stuff I’ve been raving about in the past log) is good, and what it tries to do.
The insanity of Gafter and Gosling, as showcased in this ridiculous proposal in an apparent vein attempt to change java into something it clearly isn’t – has finally met serious resistance. Java hero Josh Bloch (yeah, the Java Puzzlers guy) together with other java afficionados Bob Lee and Doug Lea have proposed a brilliant counter [...]
Tim Bray of sun has been interviewing the JRuby guys and stumbled upon the crux of why Python and Ruby are effectively sucktastic when it comes to implementing projects of more than, say, 6 manmonths. They don’t play ball with the IDE. Rather unfortunately, this conclusion leads him to the wrong realization. See here, the [...]