[ANSI-Smalltalk] proposed motto

[Marco Qualizza]

Hello all,

   I think I *really* like "Unified Smalltalk across evolving implementations".

   When I came back to Smalltalk a couple of years ago, it was from the C and Java worlds where there is only One True API.  At first I was put off by the fact that choosing a distribution meant choosing a dialect.  Squeak? Dolphin? GNU? VisualWorks?  Smalltalk/X?  How was I to know which was the "best" one, and why?  And exactly what did this dialect thing mean?  After all, I wanted to write code that was portable across the dialects.  Especially if the dialect that I chose ended up sucking.  The only thing that kept me going (and not throwing up my hands in disgust at the fact that Smalltalk was so fragmented) was the fact that I knew I wanted to do Smalltalk.

   Now I know that the dialect differences aren't necessarily as
significant as they would seem to be to an outsider.  But that's now.

   I think that emphasizing the unification of Smalltalk dialects (while at the same time re-enforcing the fact that this will not interfere with their continued evolution) is a Good Thing.

   My 2 pence.
      - m

Sunday, November 18, 2007, 8:31:06 AM, you wrote:

> Hi Giorgio,

> To continue your thoughts a bit: what about:

>         Unified Smalltalk across evolving implementations?

> Standardization is kind of unification, in positive meaning of that 
> word, which is guarded with second part of moto: 'evolving 
> implementations'. Second part guarantees that unification won't go too
> far to actually stop the evolution.

> What is needed to outside world is just an unified voice of our 
> community, with differences of course, but both are proof of our 
> strength and therefore a magnet for outsiders to come and see.

> Janko

> giorgio ferraris wrote:
>> the Eliot's second is quite short:

>>   Portable Smalltalk across Evolving implementations

>> and says almost everything to smalltalkers, including squeakers.


>> But we have also the outside word, where this could be an opportunity to 
>> demonstrate that Smalltalk has several dialects, and this is a strength, 
>> not a weakness, because:

>> Portability (if we get it...) allow you to move
>> Differences allow you to chose, and allow you to experiment.

>> The Web is just lowering the differences between dialects, Seaside ad 
>> Aida  are quite cross dialect, so, for a web point of view , we can 
>> almost already not care.

>> Some variation of Eliot's one could help on the second goal to? Or 
>> evolving is enough for transmitting the message? Or we don't want to 
>> care about the outside word (at least in the scope of the ANSI project)


>> giorgio



>> On Nov 18, 2007 12:06 AM, Bruce Badger <bwbadger at gmail.com 
>> <mailto:bwbadger at gmail.com>> wrote:

>>     On 17/11/2007, Peter van Rooijen <peter at vanrooijen.com
>>     <mailto:peter at vanrooijen.com>> wrote:
>>      > My preference for a motto would probably go to something very
>>     short and
>>      > simple such as:
>>      >
>>      > "Smalltalk Application Portability"
>>      >
>>      > which has to me the feel both of an ambition (as something to
>>     strive for)
>>      > and of a goal (as something that can actually be achieved).

>>     I understood Ralph to be saying that we ought to allay the fears of
>>     some Squeakers that standards work means placing a limit on the
>>     vitality and creativity of the Squeak community.  Hence the longer
>>     motos such as Eliot's (which I also happen to rather like btw).

>>     Peter, are you saying that we should not ignore the Squeakers apparent
>>     concerns, or address them in a different way?

>>     --
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>>     http://www.openskills.org/

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-- 
Best regards,
 Marco                            mailto:mlq at codedaemon.com