Linking languages

Question

I asked a question earlier about which language to use for an AI prototype. The consensus seemed to be that if I want it to be fast, I need to use a language like Java or C+

Answer 1

I agree with the Idea of coding first in a high level language such as Python, Profiling and then Implementing any code that needs speeding up in C / C++ and wrapping it for use in the high level language.

As an alternative to boost I would like to suggest SWIG for creating Python callable code from C. Its reasonably painless to use, and will compile callable modules for a wide range of languages. (Python, Ruby, Java, Lua. to name a few) from C code.

The wrapping process is semi automated, so there is no need to add new functions to the base C code, making a smoother work flow.