Re: [HACKERS] Priorities for 6.6

>
> It would be cool to have Perl interface to postgres internals!
> Unfortunately I'm not C programmer. I think Edmund could do this.

Now I've got a sequence overflow counting the requests for
something like PL/Perl!

Even if I can't believe, could it be that there are too many
Perl users vs. Perl developers?

Several times I clearly said that I don't know much more
about Perl than that it's YASL (Yet Another Scripting
Language).

But ...

1. I've designed and implemented the PL interface into the
PostgreSQL function manager including the CREATE/DROP
PROCEDURAL LANGUAGE statements.

2. I've added the procedural languages PL/Tcl and PL/pgSQL,
which are described in the programmers manual and which
are both used since v6.4 outside in the world.

3. I've offered help for building PL/Perl several times now.
But only "it would be nice if someone else ..." requests
are coming in.

Some years ago I searched for a general purpose scripting
language. I found Tcl, which has a graphical user interface
(Tk) and is supported on the platforms I need (all UN*X and
(for sake) Windows-NT/95). Since then I've created a couple
of Tcl interfaces to things, it cannot do by default (like
SAP remote function calls - not available as open source so
don't call for :-( ). The simpleness it uses for interfacing
foreign things is why it's called the "Tool Command
Language".

This simpleness gave me the power to create PL/Tcl. PL/pgSQL
was my answer to requests about a native language that
doesn't depend on any other thing installed on a PostgreSQL
target system.

To explain point 3 in detail: I still feel responsible for
the function managers procedural language interface -- since
I created it. BUT I WOULDN'T LEARN PERL PLUS IT'S API ONLY TO
PROVIDE PL/Perl TO THE {U|LOO}SER-COMMUNITY! That would mean
to get responsible for one more thing I don't need for
myself.

If there's (only one) Perl PROGRAMMER out in the world
reading this, who does see a (however small) possibility to
explain how to integrate a Perl interpreter into PostgreSQL,
RESPOND!!!!!!!!!!!

I'll let y'all know about the responses I got. Even if I
don't expect a single one where a PL/Perl could result from.

Maybe Perl isn't the scripting language someone should choose
because it is too limited in it's capabilities - remember
that real programmers don't use pascal... - maybe real
programmer wouldn't ever use Perl...

Maybe - (please don't) - Jan

>
> Regards,
>
> Oleg
>
>
> On Sun, 6 Jun 1999, Kaare Rasmussen wrote:
>
> > Date: Sun, 6 Jun 1999 16:35:14 +0200 (CEST)
> > From: Kaare Rasmussen <kar(at)webline(dot)dk>
> > To: pgsql-hackers(at)postgreSQL(dot)org
> > Subject: Re: [HACKERS] Priorities for 6.6
> >
> > > The hooks are already in place, thanks to Jan.
> > > He started by Tcl first and PL only after that.
> > > It should be quite possible to add others with not too much work.
> >
> > Explain a bit more - I'd like to have a Perl interface. It has to be
> > added by some of the clever postgresql hackers? A non-C-speaking
> > individual like me can't do it, right?

--

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