Converging on program simplicity
N. Holmes · Computer · 1997
Why haven't scripting languages become more widely used, promoting the theme of reusability as started with JCL and Unix? Why hasn't program reuse evolved through steadily developed scripting languages and libraries of simple reusable components? Why have monstrous, icon based systems triumphed over elegant, command based ones? The answer is from lack of convergence. If convergence and simplification took place, the same language could serve for both scripting and programming-indeed there need be no distinction between the two activities. This would allow programmers to write simpler program components since they would be more general. The stage would be set for leaner software and for more software jewels. Programs would use fewer program components since they could be more easily cobbled together and adapted by scripting, that is, be more reusable. Using a common character set, programmers could write components that process alphabetic text properly, whatever language it represented, and do so for users and programmers they couldn't talk to. Programmers could more thoroughly develop these fewer program components using the shell interpreter before compilation.