[Ocaml-biz] IDEs

[Brian Hurt]

On Fri, 10 Sep 2004, Brandon J. Van Every wrote:

> Brian Hurt wrote:
> >
> > And you will not get volume, in the Unix/Open Source world,
> > by demanding
> > that Ocaml users have to use particular editor or IDE.
> 
> I'm not entirely convinced of your claim.  I know it's true for you
> personally, but other people may have a list of reasons they'd switch.
> I'd like to know what the relative market shares of Eclipse, Emacs, and
> Vim are before assuming the best road to volumization.  What's the
> growth trajectory?  Does Emacs gain new adherants every year or lose
> them?  How about Eclipse?

Not only do I have any statistical market-share data, I don't remember 
ever having seen any.  Ever.

Another comment I'll make.  If you're going to pay me, I'll use whatever 
environment you want me to.  I might debate the issue and/or grumble, but 
the golden rule applies in the end (he who has the gold, makes the rules).  
If you're not paying me, it's going to be nigh on to impossible for you to 
convince me to switch.  It's just not worth my time.  Ocaml, and Ocamlbiz 
or the Ocaml Alliance, is in a different position than a corporation 
hiring employees.  We can't coerce.

> 
> > This is the bit of culture-specific
> > blindness I'm trying to cure.  We don't have to tie Ocaml to
> > a specific
> > development environment, IDE, or editor, and therefor we shouldn't.
> 
> Here's the UNIX culture-specific blindness to be cured: packaging and
> integration matter in the business world.  If multiple editors are to be
> supported, they have to be packaged well so that they actually work.

Or at least one has to be packed well so they work.  If you want to work 
up a point and click install package for Windows, making it easier 
for Windows developers to grab and use Ocaml, please do.  

Also note that the Unix philosophy isn't unknown in the business world.  
I've worked at three different corporations, and all three has the unix
philosophy.  Including different people using different editors.

> Otherwise you are not talking IDE, you are talking make and source
> control commands from the command line.  Many UNIXen are so comfortable
> with the command line that they have no desire for IDEs.  They do not
> see or understand the benefits.

Or, we see and understand them, but we also see and understand the 
advantages of the command line as well.

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Brian