OT (partially): about promotion of integers

[Walter Bright]

On 12/11/2012 3:15 PM, deadalnix wrote:
>> That's irrelevant to this discussion. It is not a problem with the language.
>> Anyone can improve the library one if they desire, or do their own.
> The library is part of the language. What is a language with no vocabulary ?

I think it is useful to draw a distinction.


>>> I think the compiler doesn't perform on BigInts the optimizations it does on
>>> ints, because it doesn't know about bigint properties.
>>
>> I think the general lack of interest in bigints indicate that the builtin
>> types work well enough for most work.
>
> That argument is fallacious. Something more used don't really mean better. OR
> PHP and C++ are some of the best languages ever made.

I'm interested in crafting D to be a language that people will like and use. 
Therefore, what things make a language popular are of significant interest.

I.e. it's meaningless to create the best language evar and be the only user of it.

Now, if we have int with terrible problems, and bigint that solves those 
problems, and yet people still prefer int by a 1000:1 margin, that makes me very 
skeptical that those problems actually matter.

We need to be solving the *right* problems with D.