Re: [clisp-list] Using CLISP as a scripting language

[Sam S. <sd...@gn...>]

> * In message <Pin...@ma...>
> * On the subject of "[clisp-list] Using CLISP as a scripting language"
> * Sent on Mon, 20 Aug 2001 14:45:59 -0400 (EDT)
> * Honorable Andrew Topp <tal...@ya...> writes:
>
> I'm writing a game in C++, but I'd like to have Lisp scripting

I urge you to write the whole thing using CLOS and use the FFI to run
things which _have_ to be in C.
You will win on many accounts, mostly with automatic memory management,
interactive development (==> short cycle), and the power of CLOS.

Lisps (except for those which are designed to be embedded, like ECLS or
ELK which you have rejected already :-) have an unfortunate tendency of
thinking of themselves as being only the masters.  FFIs usually call
other languages, not allow Lisp to be called from them.
There is a good reason for that - you can easily embed assembly code in
C, but not vice versa (who would want to call C from assembly?), and
since Lisp is higher level than any other widely deployed language, you
would not want to call it from those other inferior beasts.

Thus I repeat my suggestion: use C/C++ to implement the system-level
functionality which have to be very fast, and do the main coding in
CLOS.  This is the right design path!

> Secondly, I'm unable to get clisp.cons.org or www.cons.org. The router
> at 165.113.22.149 goes into a loop with itself until TTL
> expires. Every comp with net access I've tried does this. Are there
> any mirrors?

cons.org is dead until further notice.
this is beyond our control.
please use clisp.sf.net for now.

> Thirdly, I've already investigated and rejected:
>  - siod
>  - umb-scheme
>  - MIT scheme
>  - elisp
>  - ECLS
>  - VSLisp
>  - ELK
>  - GCL
>  - Guile

the list is impressive.
librep, guile and elisp have been successfully used as scripting
languages for large C programs, librep and guile having been designed
for that specific purpose.
I discourage you from using elisp and librep since they implement
non-standard dialects of Lisp.
I do not recommend guile either since the standard part is too tiny to
be usable for real programming and the extensions (object and package
systems) are non-standard.

Thus I repeat my suggestion - use CLOS for everything except for
speed-critical parts _after_ profiling.

-- 
Sam Steingold (http://www.podval.org/~sds)
Support Israel's right to defend herself! <http://www.i-charity.com/go/israel>
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There are two ways to write error-free programs; only the third one works.