From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=0.2 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,INVALID_MSGID, REPLYTO_WITHOUT_TO_CC autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 109fba,97482af7429a6a62 X-Google-Attributes: gid109fba,public X-Google-Thread: 10d15b,97482af7429a6a62 X-Google-Attributes: gid10d15b,public X-Google-Thread: 103376,97482af7429a6a62 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public From: mbk@jt3ws1.etd.ornl.gov (Kennel) Subject: Re: Language Efficiency Date: 1995/04/20 Message-ID: <3n4bal$dn6@stc06.ctd.ornl.gov>#1/1 X-Deja-AN: 101281644 references: <3lmt64$stt@dplanet.p2k.cbis.com> <3lrrqk$kbj@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu> <3ls7u0$3v1@stc06.ctd.ornl.gov> <9511001.20524@mulga.cs.mu.OZ.AU> followup-to: comp.lang.c++,comp.lang.ada,comp.lang.cobol organization: Oak Ridge National Lab, Oak Ridge, TN reply-to: kennel@msr.epm.ornl.gov newsgroups: comp.lang.c++,comp.lang.ada,comp.lang.cobol Date: 1995-04-20T00:00:00+00:00 List-Id: Robert Dewar (dewar@cs.nyu.edu) wrote: > But how can forbidding a feature POSSIBLY mean that you can compile faster. > If it is possible to compile faster if read(x) and call(x) are avoided, then > surely a prolog compiler can just look at your program, see if you use these > features, and use one of two totally different compilation strategies > depending on the answer. If the compiler can see the whole program at once! And you have to write two compilers. :-O I find this difference rather odd: * It's dogma that the choice of theoretical processor architecture {hardware language} makes a big difference in the eventual speed of its implementation. Note, not the "maximum possible given any technology imaginable" but the realistic "likely given economic constraints." Proven by empirical example. * But it's very controversial that the choice of software language design can make a big difference in eventual speed of its implementation, given reasonable economic constraints. {Personally I think this is also demonstrated by empirical example.} cheers matt