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Re:Ask HN: Areas in Programming to Avoid by aleksv on Sunday June 20, 2021 @05:07AM (#27568362)
Yes, I understand. Python can also be compiled to native code, if its developers decide to go that way. PHP8 is JIT compiled by now. It's more about being "closer to the machine". You can solve much more practical coding problems being "closer to the machine". Just check which class of specialists use Lisp/Python, compare to C/C++. I guess the initial question is "how to be relevant for a longer time on this market". Native code is a very big market, considering "IOT", much like website dev market. Can't say the same about Lisp and Python.
Re:Ask HN: Areas in Programming to Avoid by lispm on Sunday June 20, 2021 @09:10AM (#27569605)
> Python can also be compiled to native code, if its developers decide to go that way

With Lisp this is usually done. The first compiler has been written early 60s. Since then zillions have been implemented and used.

> It's more about being "closer to the machine".

If one looks at a single CPU Lisp can compile itself to fast code, even in the range of 50% slower than C - compared to standard Python which can be much slower, unless computation stays in the Python libs which are written in C.

Where Lisp loses is the whole infrastructure to more advanced parts of the hardware and the systems. Linux for example is largely defined with C level interfaces. Lisp uses them, as foreign code and data - it can't use its GC managed memory.

> Native code is a very big market

Still Lisp compiles to native code, usually. There must be other reasons than native code.

Re:Ask HN: Areas in Programming to Avoid by eimrine on Sunday June 20, 2021 @08:58AM (#27569507)
Oh no, my question is not about money at all. My question is about being mighty scientist having some programming skills as core ability. Also my question is about being a good man, for example, I do not want to develop (or to help to develop) any malware, weapons, fake news providers and surveillance stuff.
Re:Ask HN: Areas in Programming to Avoid by aleksv on Sunday June 20, 2021 @09:44AM (#27569890)
For science, Python probably, it gained much tracktion in scientific community in the recent couple of years. But it's only a subset of "programming". C-like languages usually offer to become full-time programmer. In science you may need to read books and papers more often than to code I think.
Re:Ask HN: Areas in Programming to Avoid by eimrine on Sunday June 20, 2021 @03:26PM (#27573124)
By the way, I do not think I need advices about good ways. Please, bad ways only.
Re:Ask HN: Areas in Programming to Avoid by aleksv on Monday June 21, 2021 @12:45AM (#27576391)
You can only create "bad" code in programming, there's nothing bad in programming I know of. Ah, don't forget that as per GitHub statistics, programmers usually have psycho-neurological problems, it's a hard thing for the mind to stay in balance.
Re:Ask HN: Areas in Programming to Avoid by eimrine on Monday June 21, 2021 @03:01AM (#27576949)
Do you really have that psycho-neurological problems? If yes, what do you think has caused them? Another question is how to predict which technology will have a long live, like Facebook's React, and which one will die shortly after birth, like Google's Angular.
Re:Ask HN: Areas in Programming to Avoid by aleksv on Monday June 21, 2021 @03:56AM (#27577177)
Yes, to some degree, I have problems, but not too severe. The problem is you have to think logically, this puts your mind into "black or white" mode, and you have to find strength in yourself not to apply it to all surrounding life. There's no way to predict which technology will last longer. I think C will last indefinitely, because it's an "optimal" close-to-machine language. C++ is much better at coding large systems, but you have to be very smart at handling it, it has a lot of "hype-driven" innovations, not necessarily needed. Web is a very "interpreter" driven market, so "interpreters" will born and fade indefinitely, you can't predict it. Too many ways to do the same thing, basically.