Looking for ugly code comparisons WAS: Slashdotter looking for kids' programming language

[viktoras didziulis]

Dave Cragg wrote:
 >
 > I'll play Devil's Advocate.
 >
 > There seems to be some assumptions about what is easier for a child.
 > One of these assumptions is that a "simple English-like syntax" is
 > simpler than other kinds of syntax. I wonder if that is not an adult
 > prejudice.
 >
 > Compare these two ways of representing properties:
 >
 > the text of me
 > me.text


Sorry for possible double posting (my first attempt went in html and I 
hope it wont appear on this list :-) ).

I would like to agree with Dave's point. Especially in countries, where 
English is not native language or take the major part of Europe, where 
kids do not speak English yet, the assumption that English like language 
is easier to learn as a programming language is wrong. It might be true 
if it were Lithuanian-like, Polish-like, Russian-like, Czech-like, 
Finish-like, Bulgarian-like, Georgian-like or Chinese-like (outside 
Europe) though.
For example if we translate
put 3 into field "Boo" of card "Mano" of stack "Programa"  into correct 
Lithuanian it should look like
įdėk 3 į krūvos "Programa" kortos "Mano" lauką "Boo"..
So similarity to whatever spoken language is completely not a point to 
the most of children on this Earth .

On the other hand, learning Revolution might help kids learn something 
about thinking in English. And this is a very good point!

What we were taught at school was FOCAL, I doubt anyone on this list has 
heard anything about this. Later Pascal, but in that time PC was a very 
rare thing outside the school. Those who were interested  practiced most 
concepts of programming by writing programs for  programmable 
calculators like MK-52, etc.. likely not known outside the former ussr, 
and the language was somehow similar to assembly - sets of instructions, 
pushing and popping numbers from stack (memory, nothing in common with 
Revolution stacks), registers. So people who propose assembly might be 
right as well.. At the university we were taught Pascal/Delphi again. 
Life forced to learn HTML/Javascript and finally Revolution RAD was a 
real discovery, but at that point I was 10 years past my childhood and 
already had my own money to spend for Revolution ;-). Conclusion: if 
anyone is motivated to learn programming he will choose something he has 
an easier access to.

Do kids have easy access to Revolution ? It depends on their parents I 
think...

Best regards!
Viktoras