You should check out what JRuby has done in this area.... I think you'd reconsider. I don't have time to dig up the links right now, maybe tomorrow.
I find using the REPL in ruby and esp rails to be hugely useful. The rails REPL launches with the same context as your application, so you have instant access to database models, configuration, etc without the hassle of any setup. Obviously, IDEs are better for certain things such as debugging. But from Rails REPL I can achieve tasks much more quickly than I could via an IDE setup. I want both - IDE and a REPL, and an embedded REPL in my IDE. Example: pull in a User model from my database with ID 2: ruby-1.9.2-p136 :002 > User.find(2) => [#<User id: 2, email: "[email protected]", created_at: "2011-03-18 03:23:44", updated_at: "2011-06-15 01:52:51", device_token: nil, badge_count: 0, notification_count: 2, perishable_token: "Q59LiNwGDuhAbizdqibv">] 2011/6/15 Cédric Beust ♔ <[email protected]>: > On Wed, Jun 15, 2011 at 8:24 PM, phil swenson <[email protected]> > wrote: >> >> It should have a REPL. (how in 2011 can Java still not come with a REPL?) > > FYI, every Java IDE offers a REPL. They are call Display views in Eclipse, > or there's another kind called scratch pages (I think). > Having said that, I think the importance of a REPL is way overstated: it's > pretty easy to throw a few lines of Java code together and run them with > full debugger support (which the REPL doesn't offer) in a matter of seconds. > This is much, much more powerful than a REPL will ever able to offer you. > Another reason why I think REPL's are not that useful is that most of the > problems that I need to investigate require a full runtime environment to > make sense. In other words, I usually need a breakpoint at a specific place > and to run my application in order to set up the environment in a way that > inspecting the code will make any sense. Again, a REPL is very limited for > this and only useful for very trivial situations. > -- > Cédric > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "The Java Posse" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/javaposse?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "The Java Posse" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/javaposse?hl=en.
