PIKE 7.4 ANNOUNCEMENT |
$Id: ANNOUNCE,v 1.11 2003/03/19 20:22:31 nilsson Exp $ |
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Pike is an interpreted, object-oriented programming language with a |
syntax reminiscent of C and Java, and freely available and distributable |
under the GNU General Public License (GPL). |
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Pike is just as suitable for intricate and large applications as for |
creating use-once scripts. When needed, you can also write |
Pike modules in C, to gain better performance or access C |
libraries. This is transparent to the module's users; the modules |
written in C and those written in Pike are accessed in exactly the |
same way. |
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Some Pike highlights: |
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+ Freely distributable under GPL |
+ Interpreted - no compilation and linking needed to run code |
+ Object Oriented - straightforward and powerful object |
orientation, including multiple inheritance |
+ Modular - extendible with modules written in C or Pike |
+ Powerful - high-level language, concise code |
+ Incremental - allows on-the-fly modifications and recompilations |
+ Source Code Available - promoting sharing of useful code |
+ Portable - Platform independent and available on most common |
flavors of Unix, as well as Windows. |
+ Powerful, Flexible and Efficient Data Types |
+ Automatic Memory Management |
+ Scalable - as useful for small scripts as for powerful and |
complex applications. |
+ Text Processing - e.g. for filtering |
+ Exception Handling |
+ Multi-Threaded Application Development Possible |
+ Easy-to-Learn C-like Syntax |
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The standard Pike distribution comes with a number of modules for |
various useful purposes. Among these are: |
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+ Image processing with support for several graphic file |
formats (such as JPEG, PNM, PNG, TIFF and IFF), and |
numerous image manipulation functions |
+ Cryptographic functions, including SSL support |
+ Database interface to several common SQL databases, |
including MySQL and Oracle |
+ Embedding interfaces for Java and Perl |
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Some other modules include support for MIME, Gz, Gmp, Gdbm, GTK, |
XML, and regular expressions. |
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