Lisp 有什么好的？

我不知道足够的 Lisp 来判断它是好是坏。似乎每个使用过 Lisp 的人都喜欢它，然而现在最流行的语言是从 C 语言衍生而来的。

那么 Lisp 到底有什么特别好的地方，为什么没有更多地使用它呢？Lisp 有没有什么不好的地方(除了不停地使用括号) ？

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Here's some helpful links:

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The first chapter of Peter Seibel's excellent Practical Common Lisp covers his reasons for liking Lisp. Bottom line is the phrase "programmable programming language" -- the ability to customise the language to your domain or preferred style.

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最佳答案

Lisp is the Chuck Norris of programming languages.

Lisp is the bar other languages are measured against.

Knowing Lisp demonstrates developer enlightenment.

I've heard of 3 weaknesses (and their counter-arguments):

  1. Dynamic typing.

    There's an argument for statically typed languages out there revolving around giving the compiler enough information to catch a certain class of errors so they don't happen at runtime. But you still need to test.

    This article argues for dynamic typing along with more testing: Strong Typing vs. Strong Testing.

  2. Hard to pick up.

    There are actually two parts to this: learning and tools.

    Lisp takes some effort to really "get", but it's worth it, because learning Lisp really will make you a better programmer in other languages. For instance, once you really "get" closures, you'll understand Java's inner classes. And once you "get" first-class functions, you'll be depressed every time you use a language without them.

    I've read The Little Schemer and am reading Practical Common Lisp, which are both excellent.

    Next are the tools. I'm on a Mac, so I've zeroed in on Aquamacs Emacs (makes Emacs livable for a novice) and Steel Bank Common Lisp (SBCL).

  3. Lack of libraries.

    I can't tell for sure yet, but I doubt it. For building web sites it looks like Hunchentoot and Elephant provide a good set of tools. But really I don't see Lispers complaining about the lack of libraries (maybe because Lisp is so powerful they just aren't needed?).

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“Lisp is a programmable programming language.”
— John Foderaro, CACM, September 1991

Here’s my view:

On the surface, Lisp is a nice, simple functional programming language. There’s almost no syntax, and all the pieces fit together in logical ways.

If you dig a little deeper, read SICP, and write a metacircular evaluator, you discover two things: One, the whole interpreter (given just a few primitives) is just barely a page of code, and two, the relationship between code and data allows for elegant programming techniques.

Once you’ve fully absorbed this, it feels like other languages are set in stone when they only allow you to say a few things. Lisp can build any abstraction at all if you can define syntax and semantics for it.

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Lisp is good because it has a very minimal, simple, regular syntax.

Lisp is bad because it has a very minimal, simple, regular syntax.

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"Any sufficiently complicated C or Fortran program contains an ad hoc, informally-specified, bug-ridden, slow implementation of half of Common Lisp."

Greenspun's Tenth Rule

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A Lisp program tends to provide a much clearer mapping between your ideas about how the program works and the code you actually write.

Source: http://www.gigamonkeys.com/book/introduction-why-lisp.html


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