[Haskell-cafe] On the verge of ... giving up!

[Derek Elkins]

On Sun, 2007-10-14 at 15:22 +0100, Andrew Coppin wrote:
> Vimal wrote:
> > I think you have got a very good point in your mail that I overlooked
> > all along ... "Why was Haskell created?" is a question that I havent
> > tried looking for a answer :)
> >   
> 
> To avoid success at all costs?
> 
> (No, seriously. The basic idea was that there used to be about two-dozen 
> languages like Haskell, but all developed by different people and all 
> with different syntax and so on. So they wanted to create a single 
> language suitable for teaching to students. You could say it's the 
> Pascal of the functional world... Hey, maybe that explains the lack of 
> success?)

The first goal listed in the Haskell 1.0 Report is:

"It should be suitable for teaching, research, and applications,
including building large systems."

Haskell was never intended to be solely a teaching or research language.
(You didn't necessarily say that, but it is a widely held and propagated
misconception.)