Programming in ObscurityWhat quirky languages do you use?
19 Replies - 3591 Views - Last Post: 09 December 2009 - 07:32 PM
#1
Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 10:20 AM
Processing would be my unusual language. It's technically a wrapper around Java, yet it's a completely different animal.
Replies To: Programming in Obscurity
#2
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 10:25 AM
#3
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 11:15 AM
btw I think there's an entire forum dedicated to rarely seen languages
#4
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 12:26 PM
Gloin, on 6 Dec, 2009 - 09:25 AM, said:
Thanks? It's actually the center of a drawing I made in Processing. I cheesily named it "Spiral Rose."
GenHornet18, on 6 Dec, 2009 - 10:15 AM, said:
btw I think there's an entire forum dedicated to rarely seen languages
I wish I had the opportunity to program in my high school (at least, as part of a class). I don't think mine had an engineering class.
And I wasn't thinking of talking specifics about problems to solve within the languages or whatnot -- just being sociable about peoples' experiences. At least, I kind of see the language-specific forums as being more about problem solving or showcasing work you've accomplished.
#5
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 01:59 PM

I'm about to write some XSLT. I use XSL for transformations all the time. It seems like it should be ubiquitous, the tool of choice for the job, the gold standard. You can find a considerable amount of information on it. And yet, in practice, it still feels like you're to only one out there using it. People got out of their way to avoid it. Write entire libraries to do what it already does. Every time I do work in it, I always find myself asking; why don't more people use this?
Powershell. It should be the scripting language of choice for any Windows admin. But admins aren't usually that into programming and programmers aren't usually that into admin tasks. The language is more a programmer toy, and more a unix meets .NET one at that. I don't think it's being used as much as it could.
Javacript. I know, javascript is everywhere. However, good clean OO javascript, with objects and prototypes and first order functions and all the real clever stuff javascript can do; that's very hard to find. Again, most javascript is not written by programmers and so suffers.
#6
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 03:29 PM
#7
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 05:09 PM
#8
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 05:50 PM
#9
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 08:53 PM
#10
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 06 December 2009 - 11:16 PM
OPL (Object Programming Language)
#11
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 07 December 2009 - 09:33 AM
I used the other language, called Slag, during a game design class I took and it's actually very nice, if a little rough around the edges. He originally created it as a language for programming games, but then decided that the design philosophy for the language would be "ergonomic programming," and kept all the game stuff in his 2d game API called Plasmacore. You can check out the site for the language/API at http://www.plasmaworks.com/slag. So far there have been a handful of iPhone games written in the language, as well as at least one Android and one Wii-Ware game.
#12
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 07 December 2009 - 10:30 AM
baavgai, on 6 Dec, 2009 - 12:59 PM, said:
I think there's a lot required by xslt that most people try to avoid in favor of simpilar alternatives found in other languages. For example xslt lacks variables and string comparison. Sure these are easily overcome by extensions or template recursion, but that's just more things that people want to avoid. It may also just be the readability/writeability. Outside of an IDE, xslt makes you want to gouge your eyes out and smash your keyboard.
EDIT
Troubleshooting a coworker's xslt (particularly when they dont understand xslt) is hell. It may be the one thing that makes me hesitant when it comes to using xslt.
This post has been edited by mojo666: 07 December 2009 - 10:40 AM
#13
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 07 December 2009 - 04:39 PM
5thWall, on 7 Dec, 2009 - 08:33 AM, said:
I've never actually used a functional language before. I did download F#, but as with other programming knick-knacks on my computer (aka. DirectX SDK) it's on my hard drive despite never being used. Sort of a side hobby of mine -- collecting programming languages and telling myself I'll eventually get around to using them. Whether or not I actually will remains to be seen

#14
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 07 December 2009 - 06:19 PM
mojo666, on 7 Dec, 2009 - 11:30 AM, said:
Yep, string manipulation is awkward at best. It does have variables, of course. Just not variable variables; that is they're all what another language might call const or final. It's absolutely not a procedural language; it's declarative. You can always tell someone who doesn't "get it", they use for-each.
The reason XSLT isn't used is that most programmers don't seem to relate well to the paradigm. The same can be said of possibly the simplest and most common of computer languages; SQL. Also declarative. Also used very, very, badly. Again, you tell who doesn't understand it by the use of loops.
#15
Re: Programming in Obscurity
Posted 07 December 2009 - 07:17 PM
I would really have to brush up on this one, COBOL, haven't programmed in that since 91. My first paying programming job was a COBOL project in high school. Also tutored a girl with cerebral palsy in COBOL in high school, for course credit in co-op. I hear that a good COBOL programmer can write their own salary basically. I've also heard rumors that they were bringing out an object-oriented version of it.