

Ask HN: What are the advantages of C-style synxtax? - blintson

What is better about C-style syntax versus parens? Lisp's syntax makes macros and structured editing easier, what techniques does C-syntax enable?
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cpr
You are scratching simultaneously on the doors of a huge semi-religious war
(oops, block that metaphor!) and a seriously open set of questions.

(I think this has been asked zillions of times. I don't know why I feel
compelled to throw in my 2 pence...)

It's hard to say "better" in a multi-dimensional question like this.

The things that seem clear are:

* Without the absolute simplicity of the prefix-style paren-delimited Lisp syntax, true macro power is almost impossibly hard/complex/messy.

* For some reason, most people find the Lisp syntax hard to internalize. (Likely due to its prefix nature.)

* Progress generally happens by evolution, not revolution. (Revolutions take about 20-30 years from idea to success in the market, if the latter ever happens.) C is the granddaddy of the "worse is better" philosophy that swept the computing world about 30 years ago, and, so C-style brackets are part of the "comfort zone" that most programmers inhabit. (C++, Java, Go, etc., all stay within that zone.)

I'm not sure you can say anything more before the discussion breaks down into
endless rounds of fruitless bickering...

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CyberFonic
For many people reading and/or writing C-style is easier than s-expr (Lisp).
On the other-hand it is far easier to parse Lisp than C-syntax. So really
depends which perspective you are considering.

As a programmer you delegate the heavy lifting to the compiler and choose the
language (& framework) based upon what you wish to accomplish.

Perhaps you could explain your motivation for asking the question. E.g.
thinking about designing yet-another-new-language?

