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: fdb77,5f529c91be2ac930 X-Google-Attributes: gidfdb77,public X-Google-Thread: 11232c,59ec73856b699922 X-Google-Attributes: gid11232c,public X-Google-Thread: 1108a1,59ec73856b699922 X-Google-Attributes: gid1108a1,public X-Google-Thread: 103376,583275b6950bf4e6 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public X-Google-ArrivalTime: 2003-05-08 06:48:27 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: Using Ada for device drivers? (Was: the Ada mandate, and why it collapsed and died) Date: 8 May 2003 06:48:26 -0700 Organization: http://groups.google.com/ Message-ID: <9fa75d42.0305080548.1afde9b7@posting.google.com> References: <9fa75d42.0304230424.10612b1a@posting.google.com> <9fa75d42.0305020516.bdba239@posting.google.com> <82347202.0305021418.4719da45@posting.google.com> <9fa75d42.0305060521.400f1d80@posting.google.com> <82347202.0305061103.2ddd98e4@posting.google.com> <9fa75d42.0305070504.6866e7a3@posting.google.com> <9fa75d42.0305070929.2d7a0d4c@posting.google.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: 32.97.239.27 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit X-Trace: posting.google.com 1052401707 14347 127.0.0.1 (8 May 2003 13:48:27 GMT) X-Complaints-To: groups-abuse@google.com NNTP-Posting-Date: 8 May 2003 13:48:27 GMT Xref: archiver1.google.com comp.lang.java.advocacy:63302 comp.object:62978 comp.lang.ada:37065 misc.misc:14017 Date: 2003-05-08T13:48:27+00:00 List-Id: Mark Thornton wrote in message news:... > soft-eng wrote: > > Preben Randhol wrote in message news:... > > > > > > > >>I don't think the reason for the high usage of C is only a merit of the > >>language itself, but also to a great extent the inertia. > > > > > > No doubt, but how do you think C became popular in the > > first place, overcoming the inertia (that was then) in favor > > of Fortran, Cobol, and Pascal? > > None of those langauges competed in the area in which C initially gained > popularity --- systems programming. The main system programming language > at the time was probably still assembler. The more general use of C came > later --- after it had established a foothold. > > Mark Thornton Yes, some sort of an initial entry point seems necessary. Java perhaps repeated the pattern, by being branded as the "language for the web". Even though the initial claim was wrong (J2EE wasn't available at the time, and applets never proved to be very popular), the branding helped it gain a foothold. From there, its good library, GC, and other features helped it become popular. I think Ada already had a similar foothold, though, by virtue of its defense backing. Several projects had already started in Ada, and there was big motivation for Ada projects.