Re: Ada vs real-world programming langu

Re: Ada vs real-world programming langu

[Markku Sakkinen]

In article <1481@aber-cs.UUCP> pcg@cs.aber.ac.uk (Piercarlo Grandi) writes:
-In article <1395@raybed2.UUCP> rgc@raybed2.UUCP (RICK CARLE) writes:
->
->   Even if C++ object code ran faster or more reliably than Ada (unlikely),
->
-It depends more on programmer quality than language, or methodlogy, etc...
-Sure an Ada compiler can catch many improprieties that slip by a C compiler
-(but then you have, or should have, lint), but I seriously doubt that C++
-is less "safe" in this respect than Ada. [...]

C and C++ are in some respects much less safe than even Fortran.
Just think about the nonchalant way they handle arrays and pointers.

->    are there available C++ compilers that cross-target to my favorite
->    bare-chip-on-a-special-board missile or avionics processor?  E.g.,
->    68020, 1750A, or 386?  My guess is that I'd have to figure out a way to
->    stuff a PC or a Sun in my missile (if I wanted C++).
-
-No problem here. Code generators for 68020 or 386 machines for C++ are
-readily available (GNU C++ has them or you use cfront to generate C code),
- [...]

The important thing for missile and avionics processors are real-time
features, which C++ is completely devoid of, but which all the Ada effort
has largely been about!

Markku Sakkinen
Department of Computer Science
University of Jyvaskyla (a's with umlauts)
Seminaarinkatu 15
SF-40100 Jyvaskyla (umlauts again)
Finland