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=-1.9 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,FREEMAIL_FROM autolearn=ham autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 11232c,59ec73856b699922 X-Google-Attributes: gid11232c,public X-Google-Thread: fdb77,5f529c91be2ac930 X-Google-Attributes: gidfdb77,public X-Google-Thread: 103376,583275b6950bf4e6 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public X-Google-Thread: 1108a1,59ec73856b699922 X-Google-Attributes: gid1108a1,public X-Google-ArrivalTime: 2003-04-26 07:44:00 PST Path: archiver1.google.com!postnews1.google.com!not-for-mail From: softeng3456@netscape.net (soft-eng) Newsgroups: comp.lang.java.advocacy,comp.object,comp.lang.ada,misc.misc Subject: Re: the Ada mandate, and why it collapsed and died (was): 64 bit addressing and OOP Date: 26 Apr 2003 07:44:00 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Message-ID: <9fa75d42.0304260644.764b8674@posting.google.com> References: <3E5C7033.BD5DC462@adaworks.com> <9fa75d42.0302260618.7506cba7@posting.google.com> <3E5CF5C6.84822F57@adaworks.com> <8qkczsAcGcn+Ew83@nildram.co.uk> <3EA04A1E.CAFC1FEF@adaworks.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: 12.243.127.233 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Trace: posting.google.com 1051368240 25521 127.0.0.1 (26 Apr 2003 14:44:00 GMT) X-Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com NNTP-Posting-Date: 26 Apr 2003 14:44:00 GMT Xref: archiver1.google.com comp.lang.java.advocacy:62706 comp.object:62064 comp.lang.ada:36601 misc.misc:13711 Date: 2003-04-26T14:44:00+00:00 List-Id: Dale Stanbrough wrote in message news:... > Robert A Duff wrote: > > > > > Also, Ada proponents made much of its strong > > > > typing. But it was not at all novel or revolutionary. > > > > It was a very common language idea > > > > at that time, and then-popular Pascal had it too. > > > > > > As a Pascal programmer I was thrilled to use Ada since the typing > > > system is so much stronger than in Pascal. > > > > Much more flexible, too. > > If i'm asked to quickly describe Ada, I often say it is an > industrialised Pascal... > A better description would be "Pascal concepts taken to extreme". Take highway lane dividing lines painted on the road, for example. These are a *good* idea and promote safety. Now give them to Jean Ichbiah, and instead of simple painted lines, you would have brilliantly colered dividers that are one foot high and electrically shock anybody who tries to cross them except at approved lane crossing points. It is not clear that all concepts are helpful beyond a point. In fact, Ichbiah's dividers may deter safety, because many drivers may accidentally run into the dividers, and once in a while when to avoid running into the multi-car pileup you have to change lanes *right now*, you wouldn't be able to do it. All in the name of safety.