Re^2: Perl is dead

[ctilmes]

So the site is clearly in decline.

Clearly our efforts to educate new users into using search to find previous answers rather than reposting the same questions are paying off!

[Nkuvu]

I've been using Perlmonks fairly often over the past few weeks -- more so than I have in prior months. However I have been using the search, and every single question I've had has been addressed already. Obviously I can't speak for everyone, but your observation is spot on for me.

[dpuu]

If we've answered all the questions that relate to the base language then that means that the base language is indeed dead. Just as the science of physics was "dead" at the end of of nineteenth century. Then something new comes along -- be it relativity, quantum physics, Perl 5.10, 5.12, or 6.0 -- and the new features stimulate new ideas, new idioms, and new discussions. If the resurrection has been successful the these ideas act as the catalyst for still more ideas (i.e. we shouldn't need a subsequent kick-starts).

[Jenda]

I would not call something that doesn't make the headlines anymore "dead". You speak about things that are new (or those you hate), you don't speak about things you use every day. And the number of questions often depends more on the quality and availability of the documentation, than the quality and usefullness of something. The worse the docs, the more confusing the interface, the more questions.