(FC-Devel) RE: Language choice

[duane.griffin@paradigm.co.nz]

> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
> -- ---------------- I am afraid that I have not expressed myself clearly
> enough. Personally I think that DBMSs should be used for database
> applications. Postgres is such kind of DBMS. tcl is only procedural
> language that makes certain non-SQL processing easier and allows
> reasonable access to Postgres (via pg_ extesion). What can be reasonably
> done in SQL should be done in SQL. Other things should be done in other
> language suitable to the application.

Well, I am not sure that I would classify a CASE tool as a 
database application. The DB, if we use one, would just be used as 
a repository, exactly as CVS would if we used that. In fact the 
storage facility should really be transparent, only the repository 
server should know or need to know how it is implemented.

> tk is a graphical extesion to tcl used mainly in Xwindows environment (but
> there is also tk for Win32 as far as I know). So the compound of Postgres
> and tcl/tk should handle database part (Postgres), procedural part (tcl)
> and graphical interface (tk). 
> 
> tcl/tk is an interpreter so it provides an environment as well what is
> important in prototyping when you have to check certain feature quickly.

Yes, I am somewhat familiar with tcl/tk, but it has been a long time 
since I wrote anything in them, and I haven't ever used them a lot. 
Frankly, and this is only my opinion, I didn't like them at all. Maybe 
I didn't give them enough of a chance or something, but I *really* 
disliked using tcl. I have never found interpreted environments, ala 
tcl, to be that useful for prototyping / development myself. Maybe it 
is my lack of experience with them, but I find compiled programs & 
a decent debugger are just as useful.

Cheers,
Duane.

Duane Griffin
Paradigm Technology Limited
Phone +64-4-495-1010
Facsimile +64-4-499-7762
Level 13, Paxus House.
79 Boulcott Street, Wellington.
NEW ZEALAND