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Python does have the 'there should be one, preferably only one, way to do it' mantra, but to me it utterly fails at that, and is in fact a bit of a 'kitchen sink' or 'armchair' language.

That is it's strength in some ways, it's easy and approachable, and has more libraries than perhaps any other language, so you can usually get something working fairly quickly.

But it's not so suited to sparse environments. You can't easily turn a plump armchair with automatic footrests and telescoping side-tables into a plywood Eames.

6 months agoby jacknews

Lua is a great language, including for embedded. And I am sure that their Lua-based product is good also. But this article was not very convincing as to why it "beats MicroPython". The criticisms are vague or not correct. Extending MicroPython in C is quite easy, and one can implement third party modules in the same way all the official modules are made. There is build variable to set for including that into your custom firmware build - nothing particularly tricky about it. The article goes on to lament that popular libraries from Python world are not available, including numpy. But actually there is a very good reimplementation of numpy (and parts of scipy), called ulab.

6 months agoby jononor

With respect that sounds like marketing fluff.

You use micrpython when you have lots of horsepower and need something fairly robust on the network.

You use C/C++ if you need precise control over power, memory or CPU. Even though if you're doing network stuff its much harder to do quickly and securely. (THere might be better embedded TLS support now)

Lua is frankly just sparkling C. Sure if someone has create a bunch of libraries for you, then great, if not, you've now go to support lua toolchain, and your own microcontrollers toolchain, and port what ever control lib the manufacturer provides yourself.

Or, as this is a marketing page, pay https://realtimelogic.com/products/xedge/ to do it for you.

6 months agoby KaiserPro

is anyone "serious" using micropython or lua for embedded work?

6 months agoby Palomides

"Serious embedded devs" are probably using a compiled language.

6 months agoby ycombinatrix

As a hobbyist I just use Arduino (via platformio). I don't think I need an interpreter of any sort for microcontrollers because recompiling and uploading the flash on hobbyist boards is quick and easy.

But I'd like to try some other compiled language someday because I'm not a big fan of C++. Any recommendations for something that works well with a Raspberry Pi Pico?

6 months agoby skybrian

The problem with Micropython is that they don't have unit tests for the features they implement, so they keep breaking things over and over, or fix something but brake something else.

6 months agoby xchip

Another scripting language that I’ve been using in embedded systems with a little more memory is AngelScript. It’s underrated in this space. It’s very easy to extend and has the advantage of being a subset of C/C++.

6 months agoby theoutfield

I dislike how the syntax of lua feels, maybe the same for its semantics

gdscript is so awesome

6 months agoby jokoon

Is there a way to try out embedded Lua within the Arduino dev environment? Yeah I know, friends don't let friends, but I'm still curious.

6 months agoby analog31

What’s the dev experience actually like for serious Lua? I’ve only used it for some basic neovim configuration. The dynamicism and lack of type hinting in Python that was the norm when I started having to review professional code, after transitioning from pure mathematics, was a major cognitive blocker for me. With a math paper I could typically skim the first few pages to map the author’s particular symbology (if non-standard) and know exactly what was being expressed. I could never do that with untyped code.

6 months agoby smohare