Re:Why and How I Switched from Python to Erlang
by rdtsc on Wednesday July 06, 2016 @11:43PM
(#12047367)
> feel that it adds some innovative language features like the pipe ("|>") operator and metaprogramming facilities that ease many of the pain points with Erlang
Well both points are valid. Elixir does add some great concepts like the pipe, usable macros and others. But with it comes some complexity -- it is a trade-off. I don't think one is a superset of another. Both will appeal to some people and that's fine. I prefer Erlang, but I hear a lot of people put off by Erlang's syntax, so well maybe Elixir will look better for them.
One thing I am impressed about Elixir is the community -- Jose and the team, did a fantastic job building not just the language but making a friendly and welcoming community, that is hard overstate.
Re:Why and How I Switched from Python to Erlang
by jellisjapan on Thursday July 07, 2016 @09:56AM
(#12049317)
Could you speak a little more to the point about how you feel Elixir actually adds to the complexity of Erlang? Was that comment mostly referring to the addition of those new concepts you just mentioned? Or were you referring to something else that the language does under the hood that adds to the general complexity?
How so? What makes Erlang more functional? And how is Erlang simpler for you?
A big part of the renaissance in programming languages come from developers leveraging rock solid VMs such as BEAM and JVM. It enables developers to have the expressiveness of dynamic languages and without sacrificing performance or scalability later down the road.
In the case of Elixir, many feel that it adds some innovative language features like the pipe ("|>") operator and metaprogramming facilities that ease many of the pain points with Erlang. I'm not an expert in Erlang but there are quite a few notable Erlang developers that enthusiastically support Elixir (including some nice words from Joe Armstrong).
I'm not arguing with you but curious about your thoughts. Looking forward to the next installments in your series.