LISP 2 was a
programming language
A programming language is a system of notation for writing computer programs. Most programming languages are text-based formal languages, but they may also be graphical. They are a kind of computer language.
The description of a programming ...
proposed in the 1960s as the successor to
Lisp. It had largely Lisp-like semantics and
Algol 60-like syntax. Today it is mostly remembered for its syntax, but in fact it had many features beyond those of early Lisps.
Early Lisps had many limitations, including limited data types and slow numerics. Its use of fully parenthesized notation was also considered a problem. The inventor of Lisp,
John McCarthy, expected these issues to be addressed in a later version, called notionally Lisp 2. Hence the name Lisp 1.5 for the successor to the earliest Lisp.
[McCarthy, 1979]
Lisp 2 was a joint project of the
System Development Corporation
System Development Corporation (SDC) was a computer software company based in Santa Monica, California. Founded in 1955, it is considered the first company of its kind.
History
SDC began as the systems engineering group for the SAGE air-defens ...
and
Information International, Inc.
Information International, Inc., commonly referred to as Triple-I or III, was an early computer technology company.
Background
The company was founded by Edward Fredkin in 1962 in Maynard, Massachusetts. It then moved (serially) to Santa Monic ...
, and was intended for the
IBM built
AN/FSQ-32 military computer. Development later shifted to the
IBM 360/67 and the
Digital Equipment Corporation
Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC ), using the trademark Digital, was a major American company in the computer industry from the 1960s to the 1990s. The company was co-founded by Ken Olsen and Harlan Anderson in 1957. Olsen was president un ...
PDP-6
The PDP-6, short for Programmed Data Processor model 6, is a computer developed by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) during 1963 and first delivered in the summer of 1964.
It was an expansion of DEC's existing 18-bit systems to use a 36-bit d ...
. The project was eventually abandoned.
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See also
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Lisp-1 vs. Lisp-2
Bibliography
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References
External links
LISP 2 section of History of LISP at Software Preservation Group*
Paul McJones. The LISP 2 Project. IEEE Annals of the History of Computing, October-December 2017, pages 85-92.
Lisp programming language family
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