I liked the (now defunct) idea of supporting two syntaxes in Dylan.
Actually, I'd much rather have a syntax-neutral storage form (perhaps
something like a pre-parse Lisp) and editors that operate at the syntactic
level instead of on characters. Imagine editors that even allow for
user-customized "syntaxes" that help them visualize/edit code in ways
specific to their needs.
Also, someone mentioned infix vs. polish notation. I think this is a
perfect case for supporting "multiple syntaxes". Some expressions are more
appropriately expressed in infix or polish, or even in the 2D notation I
use on paper. Perhaps more importantly, readers of the code may be more
comfortable reading one notation vs. another. Another good case for this is
static data definitions. Imagine being able to view/edit these definitions
in a format customized for the data type.
I think the argument for one syntax vs. another is always a red-herring.
The semantics are fundamentally important, and syntax should be dynamic,
meeting the users changing needs instead of the compilers static
requirements.
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Chris Page - Dylan Hacker - Harlequin, Inc. - <http://www.best.com/~page/>