What is a Prototyping Language?

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Reading an article on the Internet, I came across the following excerpt:

Python, for its more generalist proposal, is a great choice as language for prototyping of systems built in, say, more bureaucratic languages like C, C++, C# or Java. But, remember, Python can be used alone as the chosen language for development of a large system, web or desktop. Being simple and of general purpose, it is also a great language for learning programming, where the student can directly learn logic of programming without wasting a lot of time on the so-called 'bureaucracies' of languages above.

Source: Outerspace ()

My question is: what would be a linguagem de prototipação?

python terminology characteristic-language prototyping
  • 3

    A language you use to build a prototype? That’s what I got from the text.

  • 1

    Prototyping is a method of building software, where only basic functionalities are placed, for validation of requirements by the customer, if ok the system can be built 'true' or the prototype can be incremented to the 'final' system or all that code can be thrown out.

  • And Javascript? In the same article, I found the following excerpt: "Javascript is an object-oriented language based on prototype." Would it be the same meaning for prototyping language or are they different things? I must rephrase my question?

  • 2

    I see that are two different senses, until some time ago js had no classes so everything is still based prototypes. Related: How prototypes work in Javascript?

  • I found it a little confusing, I’ll read more about it. Thanks @rray

  • 1

    @rray Even now having "classes", JS remains based on prototypes. The classes are not "real", are syntactic sugar. Under the Hood is only prototype.

  • @bfavaretto, so what is the sense of having "classes" now in JS?

  • 1

    About python, it was roughly said, python is a good option for creating discardable systems but can be used in building non-disposable systems.

  • 4

    @One thing is to "build a prototype" [of a software], or "prototype" [a software]. The text you quoted speaks of this sense of "prototype". In Javascript, "prototype" is a concept used in the functioning of the language itself. Objects have access to their "prototypes", which have extra features. When you do "a,b,c".split(',')", the function split comes from the prototype of String. About the classes is what I said, is syntactic sugar, to facilitate the writing of the code by those who are more familiar with the OOP paradigm.

  • 1

    @rray Translated well. And it’s an unfortunate sentence of the author of the text, because it doesn’t mean anything. "Serves for this, but also for not-it". Therefore, it is good for anything! : P

  • Got it, very much the @bfavaretto explanation!

  • 1

    If anyone sees, that comment will be flagged as offensive :D @bfavaretto haha

  • @bigown, it’s okay, it doesn’t need to be improved.

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The term as put in question I do not know, is possible, but I do not know any language that is specifically for this.

A language that can be used to prototype is one that has little ceremony, which allows you to write code quickly just to see a result, to test a theory, without worrying about performance, if everything is correct and ready for definitive use. Any language that allows writing in a simpler and more productive way can be considered a suitable language for prototyping.

Some people will say that any language can be used for this and eventually it may even be better to use the language that will be used definitively. Not always what is done in the prototype can be reproduced in another language. Of course this can be circumvented or even may not be a problem if one knows how to prototype.

The gain in using a simpler language may or may not be advantageous. Usually this gain is small near the whole.

Prototyping is rarely used in most applications. In some cases, correctly, in others it would probably avoid detectable errors in the prototype.

Python publicly sells the idea of being a language for prototyping. But there’s nothing special about it that makes it better. It only has little ceremony, like others with similar philosophy. Obviously reducing language to just that would also not make sense. It allows you to do much more than just prototypes.

  • 3

    Having little ceremony is one of the great qualities of Python, which has many uses. I imagine the pythonists must find it offensive to call it "language for prototyping"...

  • 3

    They even sell that idea a lot. Of course, it’s not just for this. Actually, this is very secondary. And as I said, any language that’s not very low-level is for prototyping, if you know what you’re doing.

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