| Joe Marshall 2006-07-07, 7:01 pm |
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Shriram Krishnamurthi wrote:
> Joe Marshall said:
>
>
> But you do give the computer hints all the time. Every time you write
> down the value 3, you tell the computer you want a number. When you
> write down (cons 'x (cons 'y empty)), you tell the computer you want a
> list of symbols. There are hints all over your program. And these
> hints are just what a type inference engine picks up.
Of course I don't mind these! What I object to is mindlessly typing
String myString = new String();
You think the compiler might understand I want a string? Should I tell
it a few more times?
>
>
> Red herring. Type inference is, what, one of the truly great ideas of
> computer science. You don't need to declare types.
Says you. Try leaving out the types in Java or C++ and see how far it
gets you.
Yeah, I understand that Java and C++ are primitive with regard to type
technology, but languages with sophisticated type inference are even
*less* popular than Lisp!
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