Re: Is Elisp really that slow?

[Emanuel Berg via help-gnu-emacs <help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org>]

Ergus wrote:

> But for new users, lisp looks like ancient
> Cyrillic.

Again this disrespect for the new user. LISP is
from 1958, CL is from 1984 and Elisp is
from 1985. [1]

Anyone here wants to raise their hand "I was
there 1958, and LISP felt just right with the
times!" I was there in 1984 and 1985, but my
interests then weren't programming.

I discovered Lisp much later and it didn't feel
like ancient Cyrillic, or paleo-Etruscan for
that matter. It felt interesting, awesome, and
practical, and that's why I went with it (to
a large extent). Despite never getting rich or
famous, nor a Lisp expert, I don't regret it
for a microsecond.

To paraphrase tomás, that is

$ echo $(( 1 * 10**(-6) )) seconds
9.9999999999999995e-07 seconds

So it is pretty clear for these computations
that you again underestimate people, big time.
LISP (or Lisp) wasn't on everyone's lips,
lispers or not, when I found it!

When I found it thru Emacs, I had never heard
of it! Yet I liked it instantly! I wasn't in
the least intimidated, on the contrary,
I was attracted, just like light is to
a celestial body!

Again, why can't this happen again?
Young people today are smarter and more
dedicated than I was - well, perhaps not, now
that I think about it :) Well, smarter and more
dedicated in a different way, at least.

But in any case, they are smart and dedicated
enough to not be scared away by the ultimate
terror, ancient Lisp!

It doesn't work like that. Young people are
*brave*!

> It is actually a prove that being consistent
> can success, even when not following the
> standards in the rest of the world.

Consistency for large projects are virtually
impossible. And Emacs is not large, it is
enormous. I can't keep my one room bike repair
shop "consistent" for long, and it's just me
and ~10 other guys being active there!
Just forget about it. Do the best you can, yes,
then live with it. Don't be all Asperger about
it. It is a dead end.

Part of success is being organized, yes, like
Amundsen on the pole. But a much bigger part is
being prepared, dedicated, brave, knowledgeable,
and confident. Having your equipment in good
order gives you some advantage, and some
confidence for that matter, but it ain't enough
and never will be. You don't reach the pole by
counting <handlovremmar> (no idea what they are
called in English) - you don't reach to pole by
counting <handlovremmar> and putting them
i orders of size, weight and color. You get to
the pole by trying them on and experiencing
first hand if they are too long, too short,
needs to be of a different material, or are
just right. And if some other guys has it the
other way around, and even has his own name for
them, so be it. Learn his name as well and
let's be off already.


[1] https://dataswamp.org/~incal/COMP-HIST

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