[Shootout-list] thoughts on the subject of ''compile to native code''

[Bengt Kleberg]

index.pl?issue=20040929Brandon J. Van Every wrote:

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> I believe that compilers and interpreters are so grossly distinct in
> their performance differences in so many cases, that until that changes,

i think the shootout has tests proving your belif wrong.


> they should be classed separately.  Many of us want to know how much we
> have to 'pay' for interpretation.   Thus for any given language, I'd
> like to see the best compiled datapoint against the best interpreted
> data point.

why does this have to be on the ''top test page''? i would go as far as 
to state that this is impossible since some languages does not have both 
compiler and interpreter.


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> A language implementation may not perform as well, but it may have
> vastly superior tools support.  If a language has 'second best'
> performance, but much better tools support, industrially speaking that's
> a win.  That's how I feel when I look at the various Scheme
> implementations.  I'm tracking how they perform vs. how good the Windows
> support is.

currently the shootout is about performance. i am trying to make it 
better at that. if you are not interested in that i suggest you start 
your own thread, and leave this one alone.


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> I think gross distinctions are the important combinations to consider.
> Compiled vs. interpreted is a gross distinction in most cases.

yes that is one such. and so is byte code vs interpreted. some 
interpreters produce byte code on the fly. others do native compilation 
on the fly. those are also gross destinctions.


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> because I've said it?"  Why should we accept your argument as the
> default?

there is no reason to accept my arguments as the default.
i have used the following logic:

we can not have all combinations of compilers and runtime flags for each 
language on the ''top test page'' for each test.
the shootout is about performance.
we should use performance as the decisive factor for what we should put 
on a ''top test page''.

there are certainly room for errors in that logic. you are wellcome to 
point them out.
note: _you_ refers to all readers of this list.


finally, please Brandon J. Van Every try and be polite towards the other 
readers of this list. send you attacks on me, my belifs and the way i 
argue in private email. this list would be best served by your 
experience if you concentrated upon the arguments, instead of the person 
arguing.


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bengt