From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: * X-Spam-Status: No, score=1.0 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_20,FORGED_GMAIL_RCVD, FREEMAIL_FROM autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Thread: 103376,93a8020cc980d113 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit Path: g2news1.google.com!postnews.google.com!y80g2000hsf.googlegroups.com!not-for-mail From: AJAskey Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada Subject: Re: What is wrong with Ada? Date: 21 Apr 2007 05:56:11 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com Message-ID: <1177160171.286985.167860@y80g2000hsf.googlegroups.com> References: <1176150704.130880.248080@l77g2000hsb.googlegroups.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: 71.58.108.40 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" X-Trace: posting.google.com 1177160171 32583 127.0.0.1 (21 Apr 2007 12:56:11 GMT) X-Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com NNTP-Posting-Date: Sat, 21 Apr 2007 12:56:11 +0000 (UTC) In-Reply-To: <1176150704.130880.248080@l77g2000hsb.googlegroups.com> User-Agent: G2/1.0 X-HTTP-UserAgent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 5.1; en-US; rv:1.8.1.3) Gecko/20070309 Firefox/2.0.0.3,gzip(gfe),gzip(gfe) Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com Injection-Info: y80g2000hsf.googlegroups.com; posting-host=71.58.108.40; posting-account=CYqfnw0AAAAF1B0yTvpOrbsgro2pqp2d Xref: g2news1.google.com comp.lang.ada:15191 Date: 2007-04-21T05:56:11-07:00 List-Id: Most has been hit in other's posts, but here is my take: I've used Ada since 1993. It is the best language for developing real- time and simulation apps I've found. Ada compilers have never been freely available to the masses. In the 90s, GNAT was available but there was no internet to grab it and go. It could have been downloaded and was available in CD form. But no one who didn't already know about it would use it. Today anyone can grab a free version of Java or C++ and be developing in an hour. There are many other internet/scripting languages available for free. There are free tools everywhere. There is free support available in groups (such as this). In 1998 the DoD decide to stop supporting Ada. It is still alive (I use it today) but finding and trying tools is a complete pain in the butt. Adacore and Aonix require forms to be filled out for a trial. I needed to get approval/money/signatures within my company just to try the software. Then I needed to schedule time to try the software (I still have not found the time to try Aonix with Eclipse). Then I need to provide evidence I uninstalled the software or my company will be charged. I think the Ada vendors underestimate the effort required by companies to just evaluate their product. >>From a marketing perspective, Ada vendors make it nearly impossible for a company to buy their product vs. Java and C++ vendors who provide no barriers to entry. Because of this, no significant contracts I see coming out of the DoD even want to consider Ada. The reluctance for Ada at the corporate level (at least in DoD and other similar agencies) has nothing to do with the quality of the products or even the cost. The reluctance is based on a repeated history (anecdote after anecdote) of requests for time/money to evaluate an Ada tool. Every department/project that wants to use Ada must go through this. Most just ignore the Ada option the other options are well understood and easy to evaluate. Everyone in the product development business can see this and ignores Ada as a long term solution to big projects. I would guess that the only buyers of Ada compilers are those with legacy projects who are moving away for Rational Ada because IBM does not support that well anymore. Andy