From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-0.3 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00, REPLYTO_WITHOUT_TO_CC autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 103376,ad988eb0a9545c86 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public X-Google-ArrivalTime: 2001-05-07 22:40:45 PST Path: newsfeed.google.com!newsfeed.stanford.edu!canoe.uoregon.edu!logbridge.uoregon.edu!feed2.news.rcn.net!rcn!news.mindspring.net!not-for-mail From: Lao Xiao Hai Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada Subject: Re: Problem trying to implement generics. Date: Mon, 07 May 2001 22:40:09 -0700 Organization: AdaWorks Software Engineering Message-ID: <3AF786B8.7DE1215B@ix.netcom.com> References: <9b46dr$cd8$1@taliesin.netcom.net.uk> <9b6jtu$4is$2@taliesin.netcom.net.uk> <9b6m27$68e$1@taliesin.netcom.net.uk> <0JBB6.10484$FD1.1197250@news6-win.server.ntlworld.com> <9b7tce$laf$2@taliesin.netcom.net.uk> <3ADC4320.7ACA3DEC@averstar.com> <9bhoup$h9k$1@taliesin.netcom.net.uk> <3ADC7A79.8E853905@mindspring.com> <9bi4g4$97m$1@nh.pace.co.uk> Reply-To: richard@adaworks.com NNTP-Posting-Host: 3f.35.b5.2d Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Server-Date: 8 May 2001 05:40:43 GMT X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7 [en] (Win98; I) X-Accept-Language: en Xref: newsfeed.google.com comp.lang.ada:7306 Date: 2001-05-08T05:40:43+00:00 List-Id: Marin David Condic wrote: > The "+=", et alia, were basically invented by people who couldn't type. I'd > rather opt for the clarity in the expression and not worry about all the > interesting ways of representing it in fewer keystrokes. After all, on any > given day of the week *I'm* not a "competent" C programmer! (Especially > before coffee in the AM!) I don't want to work that hard to understand what > I did yesterday when I was fully awake. Each language has its syntactical conventions and it is simply a matter of becoming comfortable with them. I have even encountered a few unusual people who disliked vi. :-) If my memory has not failed me, I seem to recall that the +=, ++, and certain other shorthand constructs originate on the platform for which C was originally designed, the PDP-11. The same is true of many other C syntactic novelties. When incorporated into an object-oriented language such as C++ or Java, these constructs cease to be novelties and become borderline pathological. Certainly, they are anachronistic. Then again, I am composing this message on a QWERTY keyboard instead of the more efficient DVORAK keyboard. Change comes hard, even when the change is clearly an improvement. The design of C# seems to have eliminated a few of the original pathologies, but not all. We each have our own criteria for what makes a good programming language. I like a language where the compiler can maximize the amount of error detection as early in the development process as possible. For the most part, the C family of languages fails that test. I like a language where, at run-time, I can hope for minimal surprise. The C family of languages fails that test. Some prefer a language that is popular. The C family of languages will pass that test. Others prefer one that is quick to code quick to get executable programs, properly working or not. The C family of languages does fairly well in that category. In recent years, with the advent of better tools, we can now develop Ada programs as quickly as C or C++. With graphical tools, we can build GUI's that compare favorably to MSF or Java Bytecode. So, when I also say, I prefer a language that is highly portable, Ada fulfills that need quite nicely. I can think of no good reason I would want to "take up arms against a sea of troubles" and convert to any of the C family of languages.