Re: [Axiom-developer] goals and direction, axiom vs fricas

[C Y]

-- Gabriel Dos Reis <address@hidden> wrote:

> Jocelyn Guidry <address@hidden> writes:
> 
> | Gaby,
> | 
> | Would the Fricas project better suit your needs and vision for an
> | open source CAS?  If not, why? 
> 
> Borrowing a metaphor from a friend, it is like trying to get five
> cars to California with only four drivers; standard disclaimer
> included.  

If I understand this correctly, your wish here would be that everyone
concentrate their resources on an immediately practical CAS?

But some of us are not interested in going to California, at least not
now (to further risk the metaphor).  It is a volunteer project.
 
> Ideally, I would like a system that gets in a state that attracts the
> working mathematicians, in the very short term; not in 30 years.  I
> would like them to use Axiom as a vehicle of choice, so that we
> don't have to wait two generations before finding hobbyists  that
> translate algorithms passe or or no interest to Axiom.  However that
> possible, we have to be concrete, we have to get real even though we
> are aiming at ideals.  

If we can get some basic patches merged into the Silver branch, perhaps
we can get close enough to a properly functional state in the main
branch that people can use the system without undue pain.

But what do we do when the Boot centric branch and the Lisp centric
branch begin to diverge?  Which one is "Axiom?"  I appreciate Ralf's
thought of multiple implementations but I would be surprised if it
turns out to be practical.

> I fundamentally disagree with the opinion that welcomes the fork so
> as to have the perfect answer "go away; go to Fricas."

So your stance is rather that everyone should have the same goal?  I
think that is unlikely.  Even if "Axiom" as a project decides to vote
for the "get real" approach all that will do is move the work on other
goals to another venue.  Six of one, half a dozen of the other - same
result in the end.

Cheers,
CY


       
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