Re:Perl Cannot Be Parsed: A Formal Proof (2008)
by ceronman on Sunday June 14, 2015 @11:24AM
(#9715182)
It's not the same thing. In Python this is a run-time error. The code you posted is parsed and compiled to byte-code just fine. Then, depending on the time, a new function is created dynamically at run-time or a NameError is raised at run-time.
In Python and other dynamic languages the compilation part is very simple, the code is parsed (the grammar is very simple) and converted to byte-code. Then the byte-code is executed. Things like function and class definitions happen at run-time, not at compile-time.
In Perl 5, the line between compilation-time and run-time is very fuzzy. It doesn't have a simple grammar that you can use to convert Perl to op-code. You can run code at compilation-time and change the way the compiler interprets things.
In Python and other dynamic languages the compilation part is very simple, the code is parsed (the grammar is very simple) and converted to byte-code. Then the byte-code is executed. Things like function and class definitions happen at run-time, not at compile-time.
In Perl 5, the line between compilation-time and run-time is very fuzzy. It doesn't have a simple grammar that you can use to convert Perl to op-code. You can run code at compilation-time and change the way the compiler interprets things.