Re: Rant! (was) Development process in the Ada community

["Kent Paul Dolan" <xanthian@well.com>]

"Michael Erdmann" <Michael.Erdmann@snafu.de> wrote:
> Kent Paul Dolan wrote:

> > The love of doing things one rigid way, with all decisions handed down
> > from above, ran square into the software development community, which is
> > used to speedy and flexible growth in its tools.

> This has nothing to do with the DoD.

To the contrary, rigid, top down command structure with limited upwards
feedback is quintessentially a military organization model.  No business
could long survive with a similarly rigid hierarchy.


> > "Progress, keeping up with community standards, is for other people!"

> I dont like the attitude you are showing here. I have worked
> on standarisation of telecomminucation protocols and i can assure
> you that progress is possible with a defined development process,
> It depends largely on the good will of the audience but it works!

How well I know; there are three ANSI X3H3 standards (GKS, CGM, VDI)
containing my 4.5 years of contributions. I know what is possible, I
don't see the Ada community following ANSI's most important guideline:
standards shall incorporate current best practice.  This isn't a
standards process problem, this is explicitly an Ada community problem.

> > At least when I yelled at the Fortran standards folks back in 1987 or
> > so, they responded, and arguably saved their language from the dust-bin
> > as a result.  Here, the outlook is not so rosy.

> Any how i cant seeing your point what should be done with Ada?

It should follow the Fortran standards choice (for Fortran 90) of
continuing to incorporate programming community best practice, rather
than crawling off in a corner and becoming a programming language no new
graduate wants to touch because none of the new stuff to make
programming easier learned in school exists in the language.

> Thrown away because the DoD has has initiated it??!!!!

No, I sign my name "LCDR, Retired" when I care to bother; I don't have
any particular bone to pick with the military.  DoD has abandoned Ada,
that is the problem.  The head has been cut off, the body continues to
twitch.  Ada needs a new mandate, some sense of direction so it doesn't
just continue to march in place, and I don't see it happening.

xanthian.




-- 
Posted via Mailgate.ORG Server - http://www.Mailgate.ORG