Re:REBOL 3 Source Code Released
by sixdimensional on Wednesday December 12, 2012 @09:09PM
(#4913769)
Looking back I recall this article I read in 2005, it was interesting to note it had some similarities to the way data is expressed in JSON and similar ways to declare functions that we now use in javascript (myfunc = function(input) { }, etc.). JSON was released in RFC 4627 in 2006 - the timing and similarity is interesting.
Not an accidental similarity, Douglas Crockford credits Rebol as an influence for json.
Here's Doug Crockford mentioning Rebol as an influence:
It was a TINY program and it worked cross platform due to the fact that there was a web client for Rebol. I actually used it in production just for myself. Amazingly, I just googled my name and Rebol and found the mailing list archives where I was asking about the project... ah, the power of the web's institutional memory!
Rebol (the language) took a bit of getting used to because the syntax was more functional in nature (although it is note a pure functional language). I had just come from working on some C++ and CGI/Perl programs so it was pretty different. It was a fun experiment to stretch the mind.
Honestly, I hadn't given Rebol a thought since I just saw this post... nice to know it's still alive and well.
The book (still have it on the shelf) I first used as a reference was "Rebol: The Official Guide".