Re: Learning Windows 95 programming with Ada?

["Stanley R. Allen" <s_allen@hso.link.com>]

Larry Kilgallen wrote:
> 
>  Wouldn't publishers be attracted to a title like
> "Programming for Win32 in Ada" ?  Or do publishers feel any book
> with Ada in the title must be something used in CS courses rather
> than sold in ordinary bookstores ?
>

I've often wished for a "programming windows with Ada" book
since I'm not a windows expert and would like to use Ada as
my learning tool.  (I bought MS C/C++ and later paid for the
upgrades to MS VC++ but just couldn't stomach it.)

If publishers are making money with things like "the Dylan
programmer's bible" then there's got to be hope for an
"Ada for Windows" book.

My suggestions for a book like this:

   1) Cover the bases; include multiple ways of doing the
      programming  (OA GUI Builder, GNAT+Win32Ada API,
      Tk/Tcl in Ada [cf. Pascal Obry], and AdaJava).

   2) Make it a super-thick low-rent all-in-one package aimed
      at the pop programming market (you know what I'm talking
      about: "Ada95 UNLEASHED for Windows Power Programmers").
      Be sure to use the word "power" at least three times on
      the back cover.  The cover is very important, and must
      be an assault on the sense of sight.  By super-thick I
      mean it should have at least 1000 pages.  Of course it
      will be a paperback, 10+ inches tall, etc.

   3) Include a CD ROM with all the latest freeware, GNUware,
      and demo stuff and plenty of examples.

   4) In the words of Tucker Taft, focus more on the "sizzle"
      than the "steak".  There are plenty of "cool" features
      in Ada (multitasking, generics, OO, rep specs), and
      plenty of people are attracted to technologies because
      they are cool.  There are even some folks who, instead
      of stodgily maintaining "I program in Ada because it's
      the best way to produce reliable software", will confess
      after a few drinks that they use Ada because it's cool.
      You might even find this kind of person in a common
      household mirror one day.

-- 
Stanley Allen
mailto:s_allen@hso.link.com