Re: a question from a newbie...

[tmoran@bix.com]

>what are the advantages of using Ada over C/C++?  Does it generate
>faster code?  More secure code?

  Ada is a language.  It doesn't generate better code - it makes it
easier for you to write better code.  Better means easier for your
teammates and successors to understand and update, easier to port to
another system, and less likely to have hidden errors.

  Ada the language does have some capabilities that C/C++ does not,
including, for instance, multi-tasking, fixed point arithmetic,
distributed processing, decimal arithmetic and COBOL style picture
clauses.

An Ada compiler has more information about what's going on than a
C/C++ compiler, so it can generate faster code, but that can be
countered by additional run-time checking (which can of course be
turned off).  And of course different compilers (for Ada or C/C++)
have different speed/size/cost/convenience/helpfulness tradeoffs.

>I heard it either is or used to be used in several government
>agencies, so I know it's gotta be superior in some way.

  Most Ada books give some Ada history in the preface.  Ada was the
winner in a competition sponsored by the US Defense Department for a
powerful language for reliable, and long lasting, systems.  It's
used, among other places, in trains, planes, and rockets - where
crashes are not a joke.  I don't think it's used much by Microsoft.

  You might want to download one of the $0 Ada compilers to try out
this summer.  If you want to do Windows GUI stuff, there are also
interface libraries at several levels of abstraction, coverage,
and cost.  In his post-Freshman summer, my son practiced Ada by
writing a system to capture real-time usage information on a
Windows machine, write it to an MS Access database, and display
graphs.  What would you like to do?

  If you know C/C++, you might find "Ada as a second language" a
useful book.  There's also quite a bit of sample source code
available via Walnut Creek CDRoms or the net.  Look at
www.AdaPower.com