[jimbokun]

I'm not sure the "Environments" he cites are good examples for most types of software development.

Mathematica, MATLAB, Lisp, Smalltalk, are all development environments where there are a lot of questions around how to best deploy the software after you have written it. Maybe in some cases you have enough control over the customer environment where you can tell them "Just install MATLAB, then run this code we are giving you."

But what if the requirements are to deliver an iOS or Android app? What if you are building a web service? Or an embedded system? Or a game for a specific console?

Continuous integration and deployment are too very important problems that need to be carefully considered when deciding on or creating an Environment.

[ken]

With Clojure, the answer is straightforward: here's a jar (or war), or some JS. It's no worse than mainstream languages like Java -- and much better, if you might also need to target JS.

Everyone likes to bash Lisp and Smalltalk for this, but what are you going to do with all your Python/Ruby/Java code if you need to deliver an iOS app? Or target an embedded system, or a game console? Every language has environments where it's difficult or (nearly) impossible to support. It's not unique to those funny languages that don't use curly braces.

[tboyd47]

Yes, and "environment" issues can certainly become fixations for some people. For example, VMs. It all comes down to the reason a person holds a certain view and how broadly that view is supported in their own specific programming sub-community.

I like the author's overall point but I think it breaks down in the very narrow way they define fixations.

[rightbyte]

If you are using Matlab you can embed the runtime and the program in an executable. If you target embedded you generate c-code. Both are $$$ addons and works quite well.

If you really want the customer to run some script "nativly" I would write it for Octave.