Hello all,
I'd like to announce a new programming language project called Slate
(http://www.tunes.org/~water/slate-home.html) that attempts to take the
best of the Self and BETA programming languages, and provide a coherent
framework for these ideas. Although the language will primarily be dynamic
in the style of Self, it will also extensively use the benefits of pattern-
programming and the various abstractions that BETA has shown to be so
useful. The language will also incorporate the abstract syntax tree (using
Lisp's SEXP notation) structure and a functional character for its object
semantics. This will allow for some cleaner semantics and better meta-
programming facilities within the language itself than are available for
other object-oriented languages.
Finally, the language will follow the tradition of Smalltalk-80 by
hosting its own interpreter system, compiler, and user-interface. In fact,
we plan to implement a user interface consisting of direct manipulation of
language patterns according to semantics adjustible through reflective
programming. This will in fact form a language and environment that is
programmable by visual gestures and representations alone.
Well, I brought this to your attention as a modest request for
feedback on the idea as well as to help identify interested parties. If you
are interested, please contact me via e-mail, and I will be happy to send
you more information and answer any questions you may have. We also invite
people to assist in the development of the language and its environment.
Currently, there is a partially complete prototype of the language system
under Common Lisp, and plans include adapting the Squeak project's
smalltalk virtual machine sources generated from smalltalk code to support
Slate language primitives and the graphics system.
As soon as we produce a language implementation that completely
fulfills the language technical requirements, we plan on releasing the
source code and environment under the GPL to open up development
possibilities.
Sincerely,
Brian T. Rice
email: ·····@tunes.org
On Wed, 12 Jan 2000 09:02:17 GMT, water <·····@antarctica.net> wrote:
>I'd like to announce a new programming language project called Slate
>(http://www.tunes.org/~water/slate-home.html) that attempts to take
>the best of the Self and BETA programming languages, and provide a
>coherent framework for these ideas. Although the language will
>primarily be dynamic in the style of Self, it will also extensively
>use the benefits of pattern- programming and the various abstractions
>that BETA has shown to be so useful. The language will also
>incorporate the abstract syntax tree (using Lisp's SEXP notation)
>structure and a functional character for its object semantics. This
>will allow for some cleaner semantics and better meta- programming
>facilities within the language itself than are available for other
>object-oriented languages.
Does this mean that "Tunes" has actually solidified to the point of
having decided what its language should look like?
It's been rather a while coming...
--
"In man-machine symbiosis, it is man who must adjust: The machines
can't." -- Alan Perlis
········@hex.net- <http://www.hex.net/~cbbrowne/lsf.html>