Re: [RFC] [Discussion] Bound-Erased Generic Types

On Tue, May 26, 2026, at 8:12 AM, Rowan Tommins [IMSoP] wrote: > On 25 May 2026 20:26:41 BST, Matthew Brown <matthewmatthew@gmail.com> wrote: > >> > >> https://thephp.foundation/blog/2025/08/05/compile-generics/ is >> >>That blog post is a year old, and the top comment on the attached Reddit >>thread captures my view on it: >> >>> The problem with such an approach is that it locks generics to be >>reified. > > > I think the two proposals have a lot more overlap than their framing > suggests. Both block us from having completely erased generics, because > they include *some* reification/monomorphization, but nothing in > Gina/Larry's blog post would actually block Seifeddine's proposal as > far as I can see. > > Specifically, if you take everything Seifeddine has implemented, but 1) > restrict generic declarations to only interfaces and abstract classes; > and 2) remove the "turbofish" syntax completely; then you end up > basically with what the blog post suggests. > > > The main difference of opinion is what to do with those "missing" parts: > > - Larry & Gina proposed just leaving then forbidden until we decide how > to implement them > - Seifeddine proposed locking in the syntax with some partial checking, > but mostly just reflection support I would agree. Seif's proposal is effectively a superset of what Gina was working on, and should it pass, it would include all of the functionality of Gina's proposal and then some. --Larry Garfield