In my LISP/C/C++ system I referenced, I was able to largely eliminate compile times by doing the development in LISP until it was correct and batching overnight an extraction to C/C++ w/ compilation and tests. So, if it's done right, it should be faster to iterate than a C++ tool even on older hardware. Don't do a lot of work with the ML's or this tool so I can't remember if they have the interactive option or at a good speed.