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LISP is one of the oldest programming langauges in active use today. The LISP language was first conceived by Joh McCarthy and his students the late 1950s. The name LISP is an acronym for LISt Processing, a reference to the fundamental structure underlying most LISP programs and data.
LISP is one of the few older languages to have survived the transition to the current era of computer. LISP has undergone considerable evolution. New features, improved implementations, upgraded interfaces. Whole programming environments have been created and integrated. LISP has been given hardward support in the form of high performance LISP machines.
Response to drawbacks in the early conception and implementations of the language. Many of the reasons underlying the reluctance of some to accept LISP are no longer valid today. LISP still maintans a vestige of its past reputation as an interesting but impractical language. Recent improvements in computer technology, together with the availability of some of the finest softward development environments in existence, have done much to change this attitude. The LISP community appears to be undergoing a period of rapid expansion.
One difficulty with LISP is trying to define exactly what the LISP language is. There is no such thing as a standard LISP. LISP has evolved in a number of different directions. This has resulted in a whole family of LISP languages. While they share many basic features, they differ from one another in substnatial ways.
Next: Common Lisp, Up: Preface [Index]