Why Lisp?

I am big fan of the Lisp programming language. And everybody when hears this asks me "Why Lisp?". This is why, or better said, this is where you can find out why.

The best description of Lisp lies in the following quotes:

"Lisp has jokingly been called "the most intelligent way to misuse a computer". I think that description is a great compliment because it transmits the full flavor of liberation: it has assisted a number of our most gifted fellow humans in thinking previously impossible thoughts."
- Edsger Dijkstra, CACM, 15:10

"Lisp is worth learning for the profound enlightenment experience you will have when you finally get it; that experience will make you a better programmer for the rest of your days, even if you never actually use Lisp itself a lot."
- Eric Raymond, "How to Become a Hacker"

If you really want to know what Lisp is about, you could read the following articles:

• "Why Lisp?" by Peter Seibel
• "Why Lisp?" by Peter Norvig
• Articles from Paul Graham
• "The Roots of Lisp"
• "Beating the Averages"
• "Revenge of the Nerds"

Now if you want to learn Lisp, you could start with this books:

• Ansi Common Lisp by Paul Graham (not free)
• Practical Common Lisp by Peter Seibel
  
• On Lisp by Paul Graham
• Common Lisp: An Interactive Approach by Stuart Shapiro
  

The place to start: The Association of Lisp User

And if you need a Lisp implementation (software) i recommend:

• GNU Lisp (Open Source)
• CMUCL (Carnegie Mellon University Common Lisp)
• SBCL (Steel Bank Common Lisp)
  
• LispWorks Personal Edition (free - IDE)
• Allegro Common Lisp Express Edition (free - IDE)