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Date: Fri, 10 Mar 2006 00:10:19 +0100
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To: Steph Fox <steph@zend.com>
Cc: internals@lists.php.net, Zeev Suraski <zeev@zend.com>
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Subject: Re: [PHP-DEV] Give the Language a Rest motion
From: lsmith@php.net (Lukas Smith)

Steph Fox wrote:

> Perhaps there could be just the one hard rule. 'If it's possible to 
> implement it as an extension, do so.' There'd be nothing to prevent 
> co-opting essential functionality into the core, but also nothing 
> preventing fly-by-night technologies from having support in PHP. The 
> biggest problem there is that it doesn't give webhost users a fair crack 
> because changing hosts means you risk losing a package or two; and the 
> ability to write portable applications is affected in the same way. But 
> this isn't about the language itself any more...

Actually there is a danger in making all too many different syntax 
enhancing extensions public:
Language fragmentation.

At some point some of these extensions might become incompatible with 
eachother. It just seems to me like a syntax adding extension is a 
different beast to handle than one that adds new syntax from system 
administrators/shared hosters perspective.

regards,
Lukas