Re: Emb.Sys.Prog survey shows Ada being used negligibly

[dog.ee.lbl.gov!overload.lbl.gov!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!sol.ctr.colu]

In article <1ttj1iINNkae@umbc4.umbc.edu> berman@umbc.edu (Mike Berman) writes:

>This is a very real and foreboding point. I have even heard (but not
>confirmed) that this attitude exists in the service academies as well.
>Although Ada is being taught, a philosophical move towards C++ is being
>not only considered, but implemented. The reasoning is the same as Greg
>outlines above, looking past careers in the military to what is
>marketable on the outside. I suppose that the motivation from within is
>that to not do so would discourage prospective students from entering
>the academies vs. other institutions.

As a graduate of the Air Force Academy, I feel obliged to address
that issue. (This is a really whiney crabby old man voice):

When I was a cadet, we were taught ALGOL and we looooved it.

Where was I? Oh, discouraging prospective students from entering
our glorious service academies where they will be harassed from
dawn till well after dusk, generally treated as if they were
feeble minded and told what to wear, when to eat, and when they
can go out and play. Yeah, right. The SW language being taught
at any of the Academies has about as much impact on a prospective
student's decision to go there as their horoscope sign. And since
the applications outnumber vacancies by a couple orders of
magnitude, the Academies have little reason to worry about the
pools of prospective cadets drying up.
__________________________________________________________________
academe' - an ancient Greek school where philosphy and mathmatics
           were taught.
Academy  - an American school where football is taught
                               
(from Bierce's "Devil's Dictionary)
__________________________________________________________________

And a great big bunch of :) :) :) :) to all the rest of you
grads out there. (Even you squidly Annapolis types :) :)

-------------------------------------------------------------------
| Mark Shanks  USAFA '76               |           
| Principal Engineer                   |    All opinions mine,  
| 777 Displays                         |        of course.
| shanks@saifr00.cfsat.honeywell.com   |          
| "We have such sights to show you..." |            
-------------------------------------------------------------------