Clojure reactions?

[findinglisp]

Has anybody yet done any serious programming in Clojure? I have read the docs and there are a lot of interesting ideas there. I'm excited that somebody had the stones to actually create another Lisp-based language and put it forth for general usage. I haven't tried to actually use it for anything interesting, though.

Also, how do people feel about it being hosted in the JVM? This was cited in some of the descriptions of Clojure as an advantage. Personally, I'm not sure that's the case, but I can see that the ability to snarf a bunch of Java libraries instantly would greatly help productivity when using a new language. I'm not against VMs in general, just that the JVM was written to specifically run Java and I have heard a lot of stories of people trying to port Lisp/Scheme to it and being frustrated because it wasn't very suited to doing anything but run Java.

Anyway, it would be interesting to hear people's experiences with really using it.

[Wodin]

I haven't used Clojure for anything, but thought I would mention that Sun is interested in getting other languages to work well on the JVM. e.g. they have hired JRuby and Jython developers.

See also the da Vinci Machine project:

We are extending the JVM with first-class architectural support for languages other than Java, especially dynamic languages.

[mmmk]

I can't decide between Clojure and Scala.

[Unne]

I've played with Clojure a bit. It's very nice. I love how lists and vectors etc. all have a common "sequence" abstraction. I have vague plans to use Clojure to write a multi-threaded GUI/networking app. I'll have to see how that works out.

I think (and hope) Clojure has a bright future. A cross-platform Lisp with tons of libraries, and a potentially huge user base of Java developers... seems like there's a lot of potential there. I can't stand writing Java but I don't have any problems with the JVM per se. It might be hard to get something other than Java running on the JVM, but Clojure already exists and appears to work well, so perhaps it's a moot point.

[hilbertastronaut]

I've was playing with Clojure a while back for fun. I mean to get back into it so I can help benchmark Rich's parallel operators.

For me, the main reason for using an existing runtime (e.g., the JVM or .NET) is to avoid reimplementing a runtime It's nice to know that your garbage collector is tuned and well-tested, for example.

[findinglisp]

For me, the main reason for using an existing runtime (e.g., the JVM or .NET) is to avoid reimplementing a runtime It's nice to know that your garbage collector is tuned and well-tested, for example.

I agree with that as long as the rest of the system isn't dog-slow because you're having to box all your integers with a crazy number of indirections and such. As you say, the biggest reason to reuse it is because it's done, it works, and somebody else built it and will maintain it.

[Exolon]

For me, the main reason for using an existing runtime (e.g., the JVM or .NET) is to avoid reimplementing a runtime It's nice to know that your garbage collector is tuned and well-tested, for example.

Steve Yegge gave an interesting talk about Rhino, Javascript and the JVM - apart from the efficient garbage collector, there's also native, fast threads and more importantly, the fact that every language implemented on the JVM can talk easily with any other JVM language. It's a common ground, a documented and powerful machine above (most of?) the hardware/OS-level idiosyncrasies and differences.

[wybiral]

I've been using Clojure in my spare time and I love it. I think being in the JVM is great for a number of reasons, and while I'm not a fan of the Java standard library at all (implementation-wise) it is very robust. It's a great language for functional programming and has really awesome support for parallel programming.

[fogus]

I have been mostly playing with it in my spare time, but recently I have folded its use into my job as a nice way to perform unit testing as well as providing a more intuitive build system.
-m

[findinglisp]

I have been mostly playing with it in my spare time, but recently I have folded its use into my job as a nice way to perform unit testing as well as providing a more intuitive build system.
-m

So, what's your reaction, fogus? What do you like most about Clojure, and what do you think still needs improvement?