Re:Ruby vs. Python - A n00b's perspective
by dalke on Tuesday September 18, 2012 @04:12AM
(#4536961)
The 'print' metaphor is a remnant of history. Programming used to be done on a teletype terminal, like this one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teletype_Model_33 . You would work with a teletype printer, so 'print' means, quite literally, "print using the printer."
Other words with similar heritage are 'tty', which is short for "TeleTYpe", and 'terminal', since you were working with a teletype terminal. One could use "glass tty" to distinguish between a physical printer-based terminal and a CRT screen-based one. That terminology is almost never used these days.
When you use the word "print", you are asking Python do to the modern equivalent of sending text to the teletype terminal's printer. So I see "puts", the part of me which knows history wonders if it's also possible to put the text to a GUI, or to a web browser, or to something other than a terminal-like object.
Other words with similar heritage are 'tty', which is short for "TeleTYpe", and 'terminal', since you were working with a teletype terminal. One could use "glass tty" to distinguish between a physical printer-based terminal and a CRT screen-based one. That terminology is almost never used these days.
When you use the word "print", you are asking Python do to the modern equivalent of sending text to the teletype terminal's printer. So I see "puts", the part of me which knows history wonders if it's also possible to put the text to a GUI, or to a web browser, or to something other than a terminal-like object.