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sun memo reveals java's bloat, puts it on a par with python

Wolfgang Lipp lipp at epost.de
Sun Feb 16 08:13:49 EST 2003 
i´m not entirely sure it´s real -- i mean, how can anything 
on the net ever be 'real', come on -- but as one poster
on http://developers.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/02/09/1347215&mode=thre
said "The memo may be a fake, but it's right on target.", or, 
for the friends of the italian opera, "si non e vero, e ben
trovado". however, i dont find a 'real blooper' either --
john, you're probably referring to this:

difference is that Python is a scripting language.
    This means there is no compilation to byte code so
    the Python runtime environment has to do two things
    in addition to what the Java runtime environment
    does. It has to perform syntax checks and it must
    parse the ascii text provided by the programmer.

that does read like a claim that python does no compilation
to bytecode, but is probably intended to mean that 'there
is no prior compilation to bytecode that the runtime can 
rely on', which is the reason the python r.e. must, before it 
can actually run a program, 'perform syntax checks' and 'read
ascii'. that makes sense. 

anyhow, just posted this cos i´ve been so shocked lately 
about some of java´s features. you probably all know this
already, but i just had to learn it very recently: inherited
classes in java override baseclass methods, but shadow 
baseclass instance fields (attributes). iow, this python code:

class Base:
   x = 42
   def getX( self ): return x

class Inheritor( Base ):
   x = 84

i = Inheritor()

gives you i.x == 84 and i.getX() == 84; however, 
its java equivalent gives i.x == 84, but i.getX() == 42!!!
this is incredibly stupid. java is already very annoying to type,
and this feature forces you to add tons of getter and 
setter functions that pile up on top of tons of equally 
void casting and wrapping methods. i was just so happy to 
hear someone at sun´s having something to say about this
crap, too. never mind. 

_w
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