RE: [MacPerl] Interfacing to AppleEvents

[Vicki Brown <vlb@apple.com>]

[I originally sent this offline to the primary discussion participants.
However, as Matthias is still willing to allow the discussion :-), and as
one person has referred to my comments in a reply, I decided to send this
to the ist as well.  I tried to make several of the comments MacPerl
specific, and some of us archive the list discussion.  So here goes.]

I've always felt that scripting languages are simply a way to talk to the
computer at a higher level than certain other languages.  Scripts are just
one point on the programming continuum (I don't buy into the "scripting
isn't programming" argument that seems to rage periodically in other
quarters.)

IMO Scripting languages tend to have higher level (i.e. integrated;
pre-built; modularized; whatever-synonym-you-like) support for things you
want to get done. I'd also say that they are usually interpreted.

So at the farthest end away from scripting you have assemby code & machine
language. Then you get things like C, where there are libraries but still
not much to work with. Then you get scripting languages, where lots of
prebuilt "beads" are available to string together. Bourne shell is no less
a scripting language if you only use the built-in stuff; it's not necessary
to link together other Unix programs, but this ability gives sh more power.

The thing that makes Perl (and thus MacPerl) cool is that it doesn't need
to go get all those other programs; most of the things I need to do have
been turned into nice built-in modules and calls.  So while I can't run sh
or awk on my Mac and get much done, I can run MacPerl and get a lot done.

If I can talk to the computer and convince it to do something, without
needing to know a lot about the computer's internals, without a compiler or
a whole lot of wrapper goo, then I call that a scripting language.  And
MacPerl fits the bill. So does AS (though, like Chris, I abhor its syntax;
but then, I think "natural language programming" is an oxymoron.)

Personally, I'd love for MacPerl to be as fully OSAX as possible in every
way so that I could write all the AppleEvent stuff I need to write without
ever using AppleScript or Frontier.  Then, I'd ask someone to write a
(gasp!) MacPerl to AppleScript conversion program so I could share my
scripts with my less enlightened acquaintences & collegues while I could
write them in my language of choice ;-)

Given my employer you may not believe this, but I don't know much about
AppleScript, I don't want to learn any more about AppleScript than I have
to and I don't know enough about AppleEvents or OSAX to fully understand
what it would take to turn MacPerl into the next Frontier.  If Matthias
telle me he's done about as much as he can do given the constraints, I'll
believe him :-).

Oh, and please don't ask me what the scripting environment will be in
Rhapsody; because I don't really know... I have hopes that the Unix stuff
(Perl, Python, Tcl, bash, wksh, awk, Icon) will be accessible.  I think the
addition of AppleEvent support to some of those would be intriguing :-) And
I don't really see MacPerl going away, even under Rhapsody.  The AppleEvent
support and user interface additions make it better suited to the Mac-like
environment than Unix Perl. But this is all hope and opinion; "que sera
sera".

Vicki

-------------
Vicki Brown, vlb@apple.com, http://www.mklinux.apple.com  - Apple Computer
Journeyman Sourcerer: Scripts & Philtres  -  Rhapsodist & MkLinux advocate
  ... Toolsmith, Firewarden, Utility Tech., Web Gardener, Stagehand, ...
        	  -->   UNIX is user-friendly.   <--
   (It just isn't promiscuous about which users it is friendly with.)



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