Re: equivalent for C-style init: structname varname[] = {...} ?

[c.]

On 21 Nov 2012, at 16:26, Salva Ardid wrote:

> Hi Jordi,
> 
> I've been using Matlab for quite long time now and I recognize pros and cons 
> in Matlab language though (managing strings is a pain but language is easy 
> and 
> intuitive). I recently started to use Octave more systematically and I'm 
> amazed by its power, nothing to really envy to Matlab actually (and better 
> than Matlab in several aspects and discussed before in the lists).
> 
> On the other hand, I tried Scipy just a bit, but I know that to use it as I 
> would I need to invest time and some effort (I never used R although some 
> people is telling me to try it every now and then). And migrating the code I 
> have do also require time.
> 
> So all this intro is to ask, why do you think Octave is not as 'good' as 
> Scipy 
> or R? This was to me coming from you as a Octave developer, and I would like 
> to know more if possible...
> 
> I know every language has pros and cons, and this has also to be true for 
> Scipy and R, not only Matlab and Octave.
> 
> Would you encourage people to stop using Octave and migrate to Scipy/R if 
> Matlab compatibility is not a must and if time and effort to alleviate the 
> learning curve of learning new languages or migrating codes is not an issue?
> 
> Your response will be very appreciated,
> Salva

I think Jordi is being really to harsh, all this bashing Matlab (and therefore 
Octave) language is really exagerated.
It is VERY good for doing what it is meant to do, i.e. numerical computations 
that require a lot of matrix algebra, 
it might not be as good for other applications but the fact that so many people 
do use it for so many different things
is a hint that it is not that bad either after all.

I would say the rougly the same about R, it is a very good application for 
statistical data ananlysis, not as good for other purposes. 
Personally I really don't see why Jordi thinks its language is better than 
Octave's I find it very counter-intuitive and cumbersome, but that is just a 
matter of taste.

I do not know Scipy so I cannot comment on that one.

HTH,
c.