Alex Martelli wrote: > Ben Sizer <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > ... > > assignment semantics that differ from languages such as C++ and Java, > > not the calling mechanism. In C++, assignment means copying a value. In > > Python, assignment means reassigning a reference. > > And in Java, it means just the same as in Python (with some unfortunate > exceptions, in Java, for elementary types such as int -- but for all > normal types, the meaning of assignment and parameter passing is just > the same in Java as in Python). > > Considering that Java may have become the language most used for first > courses in programming, it's unfortunate to propagate disinformation > about its assignment semantics differing from Python's -- it will > confuse people who know Java, and there are many of those.
Yes, my mistake - I forgot that Java reseats object references rather than copying object values. (I'm a C++ person at heart.) Personally I think this is a reason why Java is a poor language to teach beginners, as it's stuck between low level semantics from C and high level semantics like those of Python. It doesn't provide a very consistent view, meaning you're bound to get confused no matter what second language you start to learn. -- Ben Sizer -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
