Re: Ada Professionalism Document

[rcd@opus.UUCP (Dick Dunn)]

I only follow net.lang.ada as a matter of curiousity and keeping tabs on
what the folks here are up to.  The implications of the parent article are
pretty appalling; I'm glad the reaction has been generally negative.  I'll
add a few cheap shots of my own:

> ...As chairperson of the SIGAda Issues Working Group (a working group
> within the SIGAda Education Committee) I have been charged with creating
> a "Strawman" document on "Professionalism for Ada Software Personnel."...

What on earth can possibly be meant by "Ada Software Personnel"?!?!  Are we
so specialized?  (Or is Ada so complex or so bad that you must be an Ada
software person iff you are no other sort of software person?:-)  To me,
"Ada Software Personnel" has the same tenor as "Sink Personnel"/"Bathtub
Personnel"/"Toilet Personnel" distinctions when we're talking about
plumbers.

	If you can only program in one language, you can't program yet.

(Whew!  There, I've said it; let the flames begin.)

Lordy!  Ada is just another tired participant in the 25+ year progression
of procedure-oriented/imperative/algorithmic languages.  There's no sin in
a language being in that category, but you can only impute so much
importance to the 327th set of miniscule refinements of an idea.  Would it
be too much to ask for a set of criteria, if they're really needed, for
"Professionalism for Programmers"?

> This document must be in a form for publication by January 1986. It will
> be discussed at the February 1986 Sigada meeting in Los Angeles. This
> document must address management as well as technical personnel.

But what is the problem?  It seems that someone is rushing off to create
documents (which are the wombs in which committees are conceived) to be
busy about some matter which has yet to be stated.

Perhaps I am being too kind.  Perhaps there is an epidemic of
unprofessional behavior which confines itself to Ada programmers...oops,
excuse me, software personnel.  Maybe the Ada world has problems that the
rest of us don't?  (If it does, I would guess it to be the overambitious
exploration of non-issues:-)

But what are the issues of concern to these Ada software personnel?

> 1. A Professional License Exam

By all means...and let's start licensing mechanics--separate licenses for
each of socket, hammer, impact wrench, screwdrivers (with optional
specialization in Phillips, flat, and for the experts, Torx).

> 2. Responsibility
> 3. Code of Ethics
> 4. Accountability

These sound like good things to be considered as Ada-specific!  (Actually,
I could be serious here--to the extent that the Ada community is visibly
more tempted by the prospect of gouging the US government out of big $$$
than any other language-oriented community...but that is not an aspect
that's likely to be of interest to the paper-generators.)

> 6. Job Titles/Categories

What do the rest of you think?  Is it different than the rest of the
industry?

> 11. Internship

FOR A SINGLE SILLY LANGUAGE?!?!?!

> 12. Continuing Education

ditto

> 16. Professional Model
> 17. Peer Review
> 18. Censure and Appeal
> 19. Best Programming Practice

Don't you know how to deal with these matters?  Do it one-on-one; work with
people.  There's nothing you can cast into rules and procedures that can't
be done better and faster by clear-thinking individuals acting on their own
judgment.

> 20. Transition Strategy

From what to what?  (I have the feeling that there are still people who
think that Ada is the single language of the future and that all we have to
do is convert to it.  If there are, I'd like to know (1) what they're
smoking and (2) where I can get some--a small quantity only.:-)

> 21. Major Professional Society

...some of which have heartily rejected Ada (in response to the way the
perpetrators of Ada have rejected them).  If the kids won't let you play,
you can buy your own football, huh?

> 22. Regulatory Board

ooooof.  bureaucracy.  No more to say.
-- 
Dick Dunn	{hao,ucbvax,allegra}!nbires!rcd		(303)444-5710 x3086
   ...Reality?  Gad, that's worse than puberty!