On Thu, 09 Nov 2000 22:38:15 -0500, panu <panu / way.com> wrote:
> Dynamic languages need formal typing of public interfaces

No they don't.

The idea of matching a contract based on type signature is too
limiting, IMHO.  I think it would be far more powerful and effective
to envision a system based on the ideas from Design By Contract.  

As a programmer, I don't really care about the type of a thing passed
in to my method, but I *do* care about its semantics.  In Java, anyone
can implement a "print" method, but there are no guarantees about the
semantics of the method.  You call it and hope for the best.

Now, if you could match signatures based on some sort of semantic
description, then you'd have something.

/\ndy

--
Andrew Hunt, The Pragmatic Programmers, LLC.
Innovative Object-Oriented Software Development
web:   http://www.pragmaticprogrammer.com   email: andy / pragmaticprogrammer.com
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Books by Andrew Hunt and David Thomas:
    "The Pragmatic Programmer" (Addison-Wesley 2000)
    "Programming Ruby" (Addison-Wesley 2001)
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