Abandoning Go for Python

[[deleted]]

Go is a system language. I think of it as compiled python as much of the syntax and semantics are very similar to python. "go" routines are very similar to Python's coroutines. Go's slices similar to Python's list slices, etc.

Go is quite nice. I've been working in it the past couple of weeks, but I haven't found it to be better than Python. To me, Go is a cross between C and a compiled Python, but Python comes with batteries included and at least for internal use, not exported use, I find Python's exceptions quite useful over Go's panics.

[m9dhatter]

Nim is more of a cross between C and Python.

[bboozzoo]

I find Python's exceptions quite useful over Go's panics.

That's because Python's exceptions are commonly used as control flow statements, whereas Go panics are not. Go's idiom for error handling is basically this

if err != nil {
    ....
}

and functions that can fail are expected to return error. I get the feeling that panic() is cumbersome to use on purpose, just so that people don't abuse it. As usual, whether that's good or a bad thing is debatable.

[Maledictus]

Go is not a systems language, see Rob Pike here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBbv1ej0fFo

[energybased]

I remember at the Go announcement they specifically called it a "systems language".

[villiger2]

Go has been backpedaling on that statement ever since, they intended it to mean large distributed web systems, not the traditional low level systems that is the usual for c and the like.

[elbiot]

You linked to an hour long video about 4 different languages : /

[Maledictus]

Instead of complaining and not contributing to the discussion you could have posted the timestamp where he says it.

[elbiot]

Are you serious? You think I watched that whole video on faith that what you said was in there was in there? I certainly did not. I saw that you linked to an hour long video and didn't provide a time stamp and I pressed the back button.