[aplusdev] Article on A+ and Linux

[Alexander Skomorokhov]

> I'd be intertested to hear someone pontificate on the sociology of the
> linux/apl user.
Interesting sociological question. First point to be mentioned, for now
there are only a FEW APLers in Linux world. Too early to paint a
portrait. A+, the only "native2Linux" (because of native to Linux license)
APL has been announced
these days of 2001. IBM APL2 is in early beta version. Dyalog's APL for
Linux is naturally
Windows emulation and is terribly expensive, Soliton APL is native Linux
product,
but also announce few months before A+ and is free only for personal use.
Nothing has been done
to include A+ in major Linux distributions (at least like what we saw today
in Brian's links on OS X).
So, nobody in Linux world knows on A+/APL. But if they know:

> There doesn't seem to me to be much of a
> cross-section between the stereotypical apl and linux users.
I have right the opposite opinion. Both (APL and Linux programmers) are
professionals (you know VB programmers for Windows after 3 months courses,
but to write APL or work under Linux you need much more). Linux is a kind of
religion and then operation system. Same is true for APL. I teach APL for
Windows (Dyalog), but all my post graduates students work with A+ under
Linux. Nobody touched A+ or Linux
before. I noticed that those who was good just in APL adopted to A+ (that's
naturally) and to Linux(!) very
quickly and good. Those who wrote for me great reports in MS Office, but
thought on {iota}3 before answer
are NOT able to work both in Linux and A+.

> The linux apl user is an interesting character.
I am sure it will be quite an interesting character, but it has to appear on
the earth first. Hope it happens SOON.

Sasha.