Most Perl 6 will look like Perl 5

[Nic Gibson]

On 1/25/08, Dave Cross <dave at dave.org.uk> wrote:
>
> Quoting Matt Johnson <mwj at doc.ic.ac.uk>:
>
> > On Fri, 25 Jan 2008, Dave Cross wrote:
> >
> >> Quoting Matt Johnson <mwj at doc.ic.ac.uk>:
> >>
> >> Have you ever run a beginners' Perl training course?
> >
> > As it happens, yes!
> >
> >> The current sigil
> >> behaviour is pretty much guaranteed to be one of the things that
> >> makes most beginners go "huh?" It just doesn't seem to correspond
> >> with how most people expect a language to act.
> >
> > Maybe, but once you explain to them that the sigil relates to the type
> > you want to be returned, the ones I've taught have certainly "got it"
> > in short order.
>
> I'd love to see how you do that.
>
> I mean, I can certainly get a room full of beginners to understand it.
> And even to remember to do it at the right time. But they still all
> look at me as though I'm playing some kind of sick joke on them.


I generally find that they manage ok once they've gotten over the initial
WTF? moment. Right up until I introduce hash slices and they things go a bit
wibbly. The LT courses cover it in about three places with serious
reinforcement. And it gets rehashed when we discuss context in detail as
well.

The fact that it's covered to that degree says something about how easy
beginners find it.

I like the perl6 style but, if I ever switch to perl6, my fingers will be
unhappy for sometime.

nic


Dave...
>
>


-- 
Nic Gibson
Director, Corbas Consulting
Editorial and Technical Consultancy
http://www.corbas.co.uk/