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Python Microsoft

Python Creator Guido van Rossum Joins Microsoft (techcrunch.com) 77

Posted by msmash from the how-about-that dept.
Guido van Rossum, the creator of the Python programming language, today announced that he has unretired and joined Microsoft's Developer Division. From a report: Van Rossum, who was last employed by Dropbox, retired last October after six and a half years at the company. Clearly, that retirement wasn't meant to last. At Microsoft, van Rossum says, he'll work to "make using Python better for sure (and not just on Windows)." A Microsoft spokesperson told us that the company also doesn't have any additional details to share but confirmed that van Rossum has indeed joined Microsoft. "We're excited to have him as part of the Developer Division. Microsoft is committed to contributing to and growing with the Python community, and Guido's on-boarding is a reflection of that commitment," the spokesperson said.
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Python Creator Guido van Rossum Joins Microsoft More

Python Creator Guido van Rossum Joins Microsoft

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  • Excel (Score:5, Interesting)

    by alexgieg ( 948359 ) <alexgieg@gmail.com> on Thursday November 12, 2020 @01:13PM (#60716594) Homepage

    Several months ago the Excel folk within Microsoft asked users whether they'd like to have Python as an alternative scripting language in Office. Support for that was overwhelming, but nothing more was said on the matter since then. I guess this is Microsoft's answer.

    • Not a bad move, actually. Excel is a great front-end for certain applications, but VBA is kind of a hot mess.

      • The beauty of such software is, that it's functional programming. So a simple elegant functional scripting language would have been a much better choice.

        But, alas, as much as I personally actually like Python, ... we're deep in a large Python fad.

        I wonder though, how long van Rossum knew this. And if that's why he left the leadership position for Python. So MS would not get full control over Python just so he could get his new job.
        But to me, the whole thing is strange anyway... I'd rather eat fried rats and

      • Re: (Score:3)

        by Pascoea ( 968200 )

        VBA is kind of a hot mess

        Kind of? I've done one project that involved using VBA in Excel, I wouldn't wish that abomination on anyone. Sure you can get work done with it, much in the same way that you can hammer in a nail with a frying pan while blindfolded.

    • Re:Excel (Score:4)

      by Sloppy ( 14984 ) on Thursday November 12, 2020 @01:34PM (#60716658) Homepage Journal

      Sounds insecure. Don't people mail spreadsheets around? There's a reason not many people use Grail as their browser.

      • Re:Excel (Score:4, Interesting)

        by BAReFO0t ( 6240524 ) on Thursday November 12, 2020 @03:16PM (#60717078)

        You understand the whole point of Excel, yes?

        It's basically a functional programming language with a UI that lets you view the memory cells directly, and adds some sugar on top of that memdump. :)
        And VBA isn't exactly weaker than Python either.

    • VBA makes me want to rip my eyes out.

      • Well, BASIC was intended as a simple educational language for children and students, over 55 freaking years ago.

        It's as if somebody used LEGO for all the insides of a 1000 ft oil tanker.

        • "It's as if somebody used LEGO for all the insides of a 1000 ft oil tanker."

          It's hard to do worse than the computer-car metaphor.
          But you did.

      • Imagine ripping your eyes out to own the libs^H^H^H^H designers of VBA.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Nidi62 ( 1525137 )

      Several months ago the Excel folk within Microsoft asked users whether they'd like to have Python as an alternative scripting language in Office. Support for that was overwhelming, but nothing more was said on the matter since then. I guess this is Microsoft's answer.

      That would be awesome for me. Been wanting to learn python but didn't have anything to use it on, and use excel fairly regularly at work but couldnt get the hang of VBA.

    • Re:Excel (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Waffle Iron ( 339739 ) on Thursday November 12, 2020 @01:48PM (#60716714)

      Several months ago the Excel folk within Microsoft asked users whether they'd like to have Python as an alternative scripting language in Office. Support for that was overwhelming, but nothing more was said on the matter since then. I guess this is Microsoft's answer.

      Ironically, I rarely create spreadsheets at all any more, because most of the time I can solve a problem in a more simple and maintainable way by writing a quick Python script to process the data. That way the data isn't all mixed together with invisible processing logic, and the data and logic are better suited for version control. The data can also stay in a more open and future-proof format like CSV or JSON.

      Sometimes I still use a spreadsheet to load the final results so I can quickly view them in a graph, but that's about it.

      • You know all spreadsheet software can load an save CSV, yes?

        And ... JSON may be open and future-proof, but it sure is shit. All that's missing is XSLT with a dash of ASN.1. ;)

        And the point of spreadsheet software is overview! Whenever you try to get just as much overview with another programming language, you inevitably end up with a Excel clone / report generator, except with worse interactivity and a slower REPL loop.

        • You know all spreadsheet software can load an save CSV, yes?

          Of course. That's how I load the results to view in a graph.

          And the point of spreadsheet software is overview!

          Except that by default you can't see the damned code. The only reason you need an "overview" is because you've got hundreds of hidden copies of the whole algorithm sprinkled around the page instead of a couple of text lines in a loop statement.

      • I have also on occasion been know to copy a column to the clipboard, then in cygwin cat /dev/clipboard | processing-chain > /dev/clipboard and paste the results back into Excel/Calc. For example finding typos in a column of names is easily accomplished via copy -> cat /dev/clipboard | sort | uniq | less.

      • Same here; I use AWK to process the data and upload them to Excel for the Graphical views;

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by plopez ( 54068 )

      were they given more than 2 choices? I mean herpes is better than syphilis since it doesn't kill or cause brain damage.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by NFN_NLN ( 633283 )

        > were they given more than 2 choices? I mean herpes is better than syphilis since it doesn't kill or cause brain damage.

        And much like herpes, 95% of programmers are already intimately familiar with it.

    • Different division. Cross-division work happens but not rapidly. Those Excel folks' grandchildren may see the benefit if that was the reason.

    • Oh so Microsoft not going to use Scratch?

    • Microsoft has been investing heavily into Python tooling for the past few years already.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by teg ( 97890 )

      Several months ago the Excel folk within Microsoft asked users whether they'd like to have Python as an alternative scripting language in Office. Support for that was overwhelming, but nothing more was said on the matter since then. I guess this is Microsoft's answer.

      One could dream... even better if that caused Excel's localised function names to die a horrible death.

      No, I do not want Norwegian names of functions (like SUM) instead of English function names - meaning the latter don't work. In general, I'm opposed to torture... but I'm willing and desiring of an exception for those who came up with that idea, and caused it to be implemented. OK, joking, but only slightly.

  • Core Python Dot Net 5.0 (Score:5, Funny)

    by wiredog ( 43288 ) on Thursday November 12, 2020 @01:16PM (#60716610) Journal

    Or maybe Python Dot Net Core 5.0

  • Bite the bullet and get a community together to package things for Windows properly as if it were just another Linux distribution such that people can search in the Start Menu for well known open source packages and they will all "just install" system-wide in a transparent manner, with full dependency support. At that point, Windows has all of the "just works" stuff that Linux package management brings, while maintaining the rich, stable Win32 stuff that everyone craves.

  • That man is a snake to join Microsoft.

  • ...Python developers get a bad feeling about this.

    • Why? Last I heard, Van Rossum just dumped Python onto the community with no transition of leadership. He may have founded it, but does he have any role in the language now?

      • And maybe this news here is why.

        Van Rossum: Leave me to it. I cannot be saved anymore... Run, my child! Run!

      • Re:Python creator joins Microsoft... (Score:5, Interesting)

        by tdelaney ( 458893 ) on Thursday November 12, 2020 @03:53PM (#60717240)

        He left it up to the core developers and wider committers to work out how they wanted to be governed. Most decisions regarding the language were already being made by the core devs (backed by the PEP process and issue tracker) without Guido needing to be explicitly involved (unless it was a change he was involved in by choice).

        https://mail.python.org/piperm... [python.org]

        All Guido did was remove himself from the position of final arbiter in cases where a decision needed to be made and either no consensus or clear majority was present, or Guido felt the majority choice was wrong (which occurred infrequently, but the general feeling in the community is that when he did exercise this power it eventually proved to be the right choice).

        From this emerged a number of governance proposals, and the community eventually decided on a Steering Council model.

        https://www.python.org/dev/pep... [python.org]
        https://www.python.org/dev/pep... [python.org]

        Guido is still active in the Python community - he's a frequent poster on the Python mailing lists. He's obviously had the break he needs to reinvigorate.

  • They could have hired Larry Wall (creator of Perl) instead. Oops.

  • M$ EMBRACES Python... (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Simon Rowe ( 1206316 ) on Thursday November 12, 2020 @01:40PM (#60716690)
    Let us EXTEND our delight at Guido's return. Help me with the next bit.

  • I think he wanted an argument, but... (Score:3)

    by zkiwi34 ( 974563 ) on Thursday November 12, 2020 @02:29PM (#60716906)

    Mistook the room, and instead signed up for abuse.

  • P# (Score:2)

    by HaaPoo ( 696098 )
    So are we going to have a new name for Python?

  • Crap (Score:2)

    by gweihir ( 88907 )

    Another nice tool going down the drains of "embrace, extend, extinguish".

  • 10 PRINT "GOOD CAT, MONTY"
    20 GOTO 10

    ( And it still won't be as bad for Python as the 2 -> 3 transition. )

  • Guido never was a particularly good designer, his shortcomings will go completely unnoticed there. He will have the company of turncoat open saucers Miguel and Nat, the latter of whom recently achieved infamy by attempting to shut down youtube-dl.

  • It's ok freetards....Guido stepped down from being BDFL a while back so you can still keep using Python guilt free.

    I sure hope this means major enhancements for Python on Windows. They should talk to the Python for .NET crowd next.

    Very cool project, check it out https://github.com/pythonnet/pythonnet [github.com]

  • So... (Score:2)

    by bjwest ( 14070 )
    Now we'll have a MSPython that's incompatible with everyone else's Python. Just what we need...
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

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