[lug] March BLUG Meeting announcement

[Chris Riddoch]

Where:  Fleming Law, Room 156, on the University of Colorado campus
        A map is at: http://www.colorado.edu/directories/webmap/
        Join us informally first with dinner at the Dark Horse for
        a bite to eat around 5:30 P.M.

When:   7:00 P.M. Thursday, March 11, 2004

Main Speaker: Matt Gushee <mgushee at havenrock dot com>

Talk:   OCaml, Functional Programming for Pragmatists

Abstract: 

    Computer scientists have long raved about the benefits of
    functional programming, but until recent years functional
    languages (Lisp, Scheme, ML, etc.) suffered from poor runtime
    performance and a reputation for being "too academic." But no
    longer:

    Objective Caml (OCaml) is a programming language derived from
    Standard ML. Although it is fundamentally a functional language,
    OCaml also supports imperative and object-oriented programming
    styles. Perhaps most interesting for working programmers, it
    offers both the productivity advantages of a high-level language
    and the ability to compile robust, high-performance executables
    with standard tools. The selection of libraries, while incomplete,
    is growing fast with the help of a lively (and very
    Linux-friendly) developer community.

    This presentation will begin with a brief overview of functional
    programming concepts. We will then discuss OCaml itself: the
    syntax, the tools and libraries, and a sampling of interesting
    techniques. Finally, the presenter will discuss his experience in
    developing a Web graphics toolkit with OCaml, with an eye toward
    evaluating OCaml's suitability


Demo Speaker: Jeremy Hinegardner <jjh at hinegardner dot org>

Demo Talk:  SQLite

Driving Directions:

      * Go west on Baseline and turn right on Broadway.
      * Turn right on Regent Drive.
      * Take the first right that is not a parking lot. This is
        before you get to the pedestrian crosswalk and the
        Planetarium.
      * Go straight until you get to the parking lot. Parking is
        free after 5:00.  Tennis courts will be to the east.
        You'll be very close to the intersection of Baseline and
        Broadway.
      * The building will be directly to the north, enter through
        the door on the left.

-- 
epistemological humility
   - Chris Riddoch -