Re: Writing an interactive function to accept a string argument, then call a Python script?

[Edward Dodge]

> Meanwhile, since you're into lisp, I have a question for you: Would
> there be any real advantage to my learning it, aside from
> customizing Emacs beyond the things that other people have done that
> I can find on the Web? My impression is that the answer is no.

I can't speak for Mr. Rodgers, but I just started learning Lisp in
earnest these past couple of months.  And I find the study
fascinating, and useful.  Of course it helps that I use a CAD program
at work with a Lisp dialect as its extension language.  Without this
excuse to learn Lisp, I'm not sure I be so studious, even though I
also happen to be a die-hard Emacs-user.

If you want to hear some interesting stories about how cool Lisp is
and how useful it can be,  I recommend a sampling of the entries at
this site:

http://wiki.alu.org/The_Road_to_Lisp_Survey

Some of these stories helped me on my current path to learning Lisp by
helping me to understand that it's okay to learn Lisp.  True, it's not
the acclaimed Language Du Jour, but it can still be an important and
powerful skill in your programming/computing experience.  If you want
to see a good example of that in a man who is both a writer and a
programmer, check out this blog:

http://www.paulgraham.com/index.html

> I'm really just a writer who stumbled into scripting by accident,
> during a few years when I was documenting software as a technical
> writer. I enjoy fiddling with code mostly to automate various things
> I do with text processing. Python has been perfect for this purpose
> - easy to learn, easy to put down and then pick up again every few
> months as needed. I once thought about learning lisp - in fact I
> went so far as to buy "The Little Schemer" - but in the end I
> decided I could no more afford to take the time to learn it than I
> could continue to learn C, which I once dabbled in briefly for fun.

I tried "The Little Lisper" and found it helped clear up the concept
of recursion.  But what is really helping me stay focussed on learning
the language as a practical matter is a book that is aptly titled
"Practical Common Lisp" by Peter Seibel.  The full text of the book is
available for free online:

http://www.gigamonkeys.com/book/

I bought the dead-tree edition for reading and study away from the
computer.


-- 
Edward Dodge