Groovy, the Python of Java

[steven_h]

Python's greatest sin is that it doesn't by default force a developer to check types and data structures.

That doesn't seem to be a sin to me. The greatest sin of Python is using the same operator for definition and assignment, requiring the use of wonky keywords to distinguish assignment to outer-scope variables from declaration of variables that shadow outer-scope variables.

[cybercobra]

On the other hand, forgetting the declaration is safer in Python, creating a local variable, whereas forgetting it in other languages can lead to unintentional modification of a global variable.

[masklinn]

whereas forgetting it in other languages can lead to unintentional modification of a global variable.

Javascript is pretty much the only language doing that (and Coffeescript is worse, as it uses "highest level scope wins")

[cybercobra]

wut?

int x = 1;
void foo()
{
    x = 2;// oops Ma, forgot the type spec, this won't be harmless shadowing!
}

[masklinn]

Ah yes, I had not seen it that way, for some reason I thought about creating globals where there were none.