[Info-vax] Python on VMS

[Jan-Erik Söderholm]

Den 2019-01-16 kl. 18:01, skrev Arne Vajhøj:
> On 1/16/2019 9:11 AM, Bill Gunshannon wrote:
>> On 1/16/19 8:34 AM, Arne Vajhøj wrote:
>>> On 1/16/2019 7:55 AM, Neil Rieck wrote:
>>>> Comment-1: I have been installing run-time libraries into VAX, Alpha
>>>> and Itanium for 31-years and have never experienced any breakage with
>>>> compiled programs. Many of these systems just continue to run
>>>> forever. Systems requiring a specific version of Python are just one
>>>> careless upgrade away from failure.
>>>
>>> There is nothing unusual in that new code does not run in old
>>> environment - that is standard.
>>>
>>> But most like when old code continue to run in new environments.
>>> Apparently "most" does not include the Python guys.
>>
>> And when I complained about this with PHP everyone who
>> heard it just said "So what, live with it".
> 
> So do those that want to use Python 3.x.
> 
> But I don't think PHP and Python are comparable in this
> regard.
> 
> Certain PHP features are being removed or disabled by default
> for security reasons.
> 
> But PHP actually do try to maintain compatibility. I believe
> that was one of the reasons PHP 6 was ditched - they could
> not switch to Unicode without breaking too much.
> 
> Python seems willing to change anything they think should
> have been done differently.
> 
>>                                            Why would
>> you be surprised that YAEL (yet Another Ego Language)
>> would adopt the same attitude.
> 
> Both PHP and Python are extremely successful and
> way beyond the original creator.
> 
> Guido van Rossum may have a bit of an ego. I don't
> think Rasmus Lerdorf is that bad.
> 
> Disclaimer: I have never actually met them.
> 
>>>> Comment-2: Python is "very powerful" with interfaces into almost
>>>> everything including MySQL and MariaDB 
>>>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Python_(programming_language)
>>>
>>> That is not unique for Python.
>>
>> True. In more ways than one.
>>
>>>
>>> But Python is let me call it "convenient" or "practical" - if
>>> one needs to get something done then it is usually very easy
>>> in Python.
>>
>> It is not really any easier to do anything in Python than
>> in a real language.  But using a real language just wouldn't
>> be as cool.  The current nature of the industry.
> 
> I will assume you by real languages mean traditional
> languages like Fortran, Cobol, C, Pascal etc..
> 
> Python is a lot easier than those languages for
> a lot of what Python is used for.

Agree! Last spring, when we needed to implement a REST interface
to a new server/application, we selected to use Python (that we
already had since many years on our VMS servers) since it already
had an installed version of the "requests" package/module.

Look up "requests" in the list of installed packages/moduls:

http://www.vmspython.org/doku.php?id=downloadandinstallationpython

Some examples using requests:

https://www.pythonforbeginners.com/requests/using-requests-in-python


Using this tool within Python is *far* easier then to code the same
REST/HTTP calls using such as a C library and having some Cobol code
calling that. Far far easier and much faster to get it running.

Python also have built in tools to deal with the JSON formatted
replies from the server, also way easier than to write our own
code to encode and decode JSON data.

Saying that it is just as hard in Python as any other traditional
language just shows the ignorance of the one claiming that.

And yes, Python is "cool".