Re: Ada book recommendations

["Genro Kane Gupta" <genro@niestu.com>]

In article <9kcgiq$36d$1@nh.pace.co.uk>, "Marin David Condic"
<marin.condic.auntie.spam@pacemicro.com> wrote:

> There are a number of books you will find at http://www.adapower.org/  I
> personally like: Programming in Ada 95 (Barnes) as a sort of full-up
> text on the subject and I like Ada Programming Essentials: Overview,
> Examples and Glossary (Crawford) for a get-up-to-speed-quick look at
> Ada. Others have their favorites so I'm sure you'll get recommendations
> for several other books. (Ada as a Second Language (Cohen) has a certain
> following as well.)

Thanks, Marin.  These are getting seconded by several others, and are
titles I've heard discussed before, so they're on the top of my list.

> Learning a language from a textbook for someone who is already literate
> in programming in general is a perfectly good way to go.

I have always found it so.

> Get the Gnat compiler, sit down with the book, start hacking on the
> examples. Within a week, you should be able to use the language
> effectively for most programming problems.

I've had GNAT almost since day one--I remember waiting breathlessly until
it was available for download.  Some time in 1994, I believe, wasn't it? 
'93, maybe?

I currently have 3.13p for Linux, but have only been able to find 3.12p
for HP-UX, which is the platform where I'll be doing my conversion work
later this year or early next.  Once the project gets underway, I'm going
to start pushing for my company to buy GNAT from ACT, which they'd be
stupid not to do. (Not that they'd *ever* do anything stupid, oh,
no-o-o-o! <grin>)

I started "hacking on the examples" from a document that was called
"Introducing Ada 9X", prepared for the DoD by John Barnes in February
1993, and have been trying to keep up ever since.  I think it probably
took more than a week for me to get up to speed with the new 9x features,
but much of that was because early versions of GNAT didn't implement them
all.

My problem is one of quantity.  My job has not required me to use Ada
(until I rammed this Ada conversion project down their throats), so all my
use has been "off-hours" work, and I am embarrassed to admit, I haven't
delved into great depth in many areas of the new features.  I know their
names, know how they're supposed to work, have even used them in examples,
but haven't yet fully made them *part* of me, if that makes any sense.

> It takes a while to really master a language, but you tend to do that
> while doing "real" work.

Agreed.  I'm hoping this upcoming project will give me the exposure I need
to advance my Ada skills to the "next level".

Thanks again for the reply.  I'll keep the group posted as to my progress
and that of my project.

-- 
Not Genro, but I play him on the net

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