Lisp from Nothing, Second Edition

As somebody who read a couple of the author's books, and also somebody who spent almost a decade studying compilers, I am genuinely curious about the author himself.

These works are something I both understand and would never achieve myself. These are cultural artifacts, like deeply personal poetry, made purely for the process of it. Not practically useful, not state of the art, not research level, but... a personal journey?

If the author is reading this... can you share your vision? Motivation?

I second this, would be great if someone did a long form video interview with the author.

Thank you so much for reading my books and describing my work in such beautiful words! You basically answered your own question! My motivation is just the creation of something I find beautiful. The vision, to pass knowledge to those who seek it in the simplest possible way, where "simple" does not necessarily mean in the tersest form, but in a form that invites being digested.

I do not usually talk much about "myself". I tried, but with no-one asking, I find it difficult to say anything.

“I have nothing to say and I am saying it”

Cage.

Thanks for An Introduction to Mental Development, I've throughly enjoyed it!

I just ordered this book. Looking forward to learning! Thank you for your effort.

Read the author’s “Raja Yoga Revisited”.

+1, long time follower of nmh's work. His books are brief and concise, but carry a peculiar "something", a precision of expression etc that is hard to put into words - but can often be noticed in long-time practicioners of some mental teaching. :)

It is always interesting to spot a person on the interwebs who seems to actually have managed to turn buddhist or some other teachings into real world deeds. Living really modestly (IIRC, he/you also uses modest, underclocked laptops?), publishing for the benefit of many, and doing all this for years and years. Like, there seems to be no "overhead" in this way of living. Hugely inspirational.

I would also point out the "Essays" section on nmh's webpage, especially the ones discussing sensitivity and high IQ: https://t3x.org/#essays

Having purchased several of your books, thanks for your work, nmh!

I love that your lisp implementations are so portable. I believe one is available for Plan 9.

> These are cultural artifacts, like deeply personal poetry, made purely for the process of it. Not practically useful, not state of the art, not research level, but... a personal journey?

I can't speak for the author but this is exactly how I look at the lisp I'm developing. It's a lifetime project. I had some kind of vision depicting how different things could be, and at some point I started trying to make it happen. I want to convince myself I'm not insane for thinking it was possible in the first place.

Thank you for your work! I share your feelings.

Many thanks to everybody who is wrote in this thread! Your words mean a lot to me! I will reply to some individual messages. If I don't, please substitute "thank you!" :)

Thanks! And yes, Scheme 9 from Empty Space should compile on Plan 9! http://t3x.org/s9fes/

So have I! :)

And thanks for the Cage quote. I enjoyed that, too!

Thank you for your kind description of my work!

Turning the Buddhist (or other) teachings into deeds is not too hard once you have understood who you are, and, maybe more importantly, who you are not. Figuring /that/ out can be tough and require a lot of practice.

What people perceive as modest is really an acceptance or even appreciation of what is. My apartment has not been renovated in decades, I repair what needs repair and otherwise leave things to themselves. I wear clothes until they disintegrate, and my hardware is already old when I buy it. This is the course of things. Things age and change and at some point disappear. Why prefer the new over the old? Why the old over the new? It is just that things and beings get old on their own, and it is much more joyful to witness this than trying to resist it.

It's good to have a life-time project and watch it evolve over time. Nothing insane about that!

> Scheme 9 from Empty Space

As a fan of word plays, that got a genuine chortle out of me. Thank you.

I just bought ePubs for your Raja Yoga Revisted (I usually study SRF material, but alternatives are good!) and Scheme 9 for Empty Space. Your web site is very nice, I loved the ‘Who am I?’ page. I have been using Lisp languages since 1978 but except for studying Peter Norvig’s Lisp in Python, I have never dropped below the abstraction layer into a Lisp implementation so I am looking forward to that.

EDIT: https://usesthis.com/interviews/nils.m.holm/