I started programming in a time when the idea that the computer could keep track of your variable types for you automatically was a fever dream, so it’s wild for me to see some programmers now throwing shade at particular langages for “not implementing proper variable typing functionality”.
It feels like someone saying that low-fat milk producers are too cheap or lazy to put enough fat in their milk.
When I got into programming I figured it would be mostly linear technological progression. Every once in a while something new gets invented that’s better than the last iteration, so we discard the last option (except for legacy stuff) and everyone moves to the better thing.
But since then everything that was cool back then became uncool and cool again at least once.
I like the SQL/No-SQL cycle. SQL is powerful, but it’s also slow and clunky and if you do it badly it gets really slow. So we invented No-SQL DBs. They are fast, lightweight, but also barebones and limited. So we add functionality here and there, and before we know it we have another variant of SQL with a different syntax. So we head back to use real SQL. But then we realize it’s slow and clunky and if you do it badly it gets really slow. So we invent a new No-SQL DB and the cycle continues.
I don’t even think it’s fashion. Some ideas sound good but are bad. Or, overlappingly, are convenient to use but actually turn into nightmarish spaghetti code. I don’t know how many people are still pushing MongoDB and BASE, for example.
Meanwhile SQL hasn’t changed, and C didn’t until someone figured out memory safety in Rust.
Sorry for not being clear; when I said “keep track automatically” I meant dynamic typing. Of course you’re right that “keeping track of your variables” could also be interpreted to refer to static typing.
I started programming in a time when the idea that the computer could keep track of your variable types for you automatically was a fever dream, so it’s wild for me to see some programmers now throwing shade at particular langages for “not implementing proper variable typing functionality”.
It feels like someone saying that low-fat milk producers are too cheap or lazy to put enough fat in their milk.
Fashion really does go in cycles.
This here.
When I got into programming I figured it would be mostly linear technological progression. Every once in a while something new gets invented that’s better than the last iteration, so we discard the last option (except for legacy stuff) and everyone moves to the better thing.
But since then everything that was cool back then became uncool and cool again at least once.
I like the SQL/No-SQL cycle. SQL is powerful, but it’s also slow and clunky and if you do it badly it gets really slow. So we invented No-SQL DBs. They are fast, lightweight, but also barebones and limited. So we add functionality here and there, and before we know it we have another variant of SQL with a different syntax. So we head back to use real SQL. But then we realize it’s slow and clunky and if you do it badly it gets really slow. So we invent a new No-SQL DB and the cycle continues.
GOTO is all i’m saying.
I don’t even think it’s fashion. Some ideas sound good but are bad. Or, overlappingly, are convenient to use but actually turn into nightmarish spaghetti code. I don’t know how many people are still pushing MongoDB and BASE, for example.
Meanwhile SQL hasn’t changed, and C didn’t until someone figured out memory safety in Rust.
1950??? Statically typed programming languages are very old…
Sorry for not being clear; when I said “keep track automatically” I meant dynamic typing. Of course you’re right that “keeping track of your variables” could also be interpreted to refer to static typing.