[Python-Dev] Re: Stability and change (original) (raw)

Alex Martelli aleax@aleax.it
Mon, 8 Apr 2002 21:24:54 +0200

On Monday 08 April 2002 19:52, Christopher Petrilli wrote: ...

In the end, I'd like to see something more concrete than speculation if we're going to change behavior.

So would I -- but I have no budget for a market survey, so I can only offer my modest personal experience. I feel reasonably sure, about quite a few development organizations I've been in touch with, that I would have a much better chance to convince them to try Python in earnest if I could send the "stability and change" message. A couple of those organizations I know rather intimately (for one of them, I've been Senior Software Consultant for 12+ years) and thus it's not just an "I feel reasonably sure"... I would bet heavily that the change would be very important in that case.

As to why you think such potential adopters, clearly so resistant to change, would churn MORE than people who don't mind change, that goes against common sense, so I think the burden of proof should be on you in this case. Why would a change-resistant user change back more easily than a change-favourable user? That's contradictory.

I'm not opposed to a new model, I just want to understand what it gains in more concrete terms. Speculation as to what the user wants gets you Microsoft Bob.

On the contrary: Microsoft has money to burn (particularly had it back when Bob was being hatched), so the failure of that project, to me, shows the modest value of market surveys (limited to the case of products meant to be highly innovative -- it says nothing either pro or con the value of such surveys when applied to very different issues such as the one that involves us now, of course).

Alex