Libraries and hierarchies

[Graham Klyne]

At 11:10 01/08/03 +0100, Simon Marlow wrote:
>You could even use this mechanism, in a per-user configuration file say,
>to site the GTK+HS library directly in Gtk.*, if you're too lazy to type
>Graphics.UI all the time.  This wouldn't be recommended though: any
>source code you write won't compile on someone else's system that
>doesn't have the same convention.

It's not clear to me how this final problem is solved in the general case 
of the scheme you describe, unless everybody uses the same defaults, which 
practically speaking I think is pretty much the same as having a fixed 
global hierarchy.

Later, you say:
[[
Modules in other packages can be imported only by uttering their full
path names in the global hierarchy (of the compiler that is compiling
the package).
]]

The "of the compiler..." bit looks problematic to me.

Another thing that worries me a little is the apparent complexity of the 
scheme you proposed.  I think a clear and primary goal should be to make it 
easy to install, compile and use any software library from any 
source.  Anything less would, I think, negatively impact take-up of Haskell 
as a serious programming tool.

#g


---------------------------------
Graham Klyne  <GK@NineByNine.net>
Nine by Nine
http://www.ninebynine.net/