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=-0.4 required=5.0 tests=AC_FROM_MANY_DOTS,BAYES_00 autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 103376,fcb0072348661b90 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public X-Google-ArrivalTime: 2001-06-18 07:36:24 PST Path: archiver1.google.com!newsfeed.google.com!newsfeed.stanford.edu!newsfeeds.belnet.be!news.belnet.be!opentransit.net!fr.clara.net!heighliner.fr.clara.net!isdnet!psinet-france!psiuk-f4!psiuk-p4!uknet!psiuk-n!news.pace.co.uk!nh.pace.co.uk!not-for-mail From: "Marin David Condic" Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada Subject: Re: Need the Same Promotion for Ada Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2001 10:19:09 -0400 Organization: Posted on a server owned by Pace Micro Technology plc Message-ID: <9gl2kv$abb$1@nh.pace.co.uk> References: <3B2A8A95.6F8D1290@lmtas.lmco.com> <3B2B73D0.F5E67C01@flash.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: 136.170.200.133 X-Trace: nh.pace.co.uk 992873951 10603 136.170.200.133 (18 Jun 2001 14:19:11 GMT) X-Complaints-To: newsmaster@pace.co.uk NNTP-Posting-Date: 18 Jun 2001 14:19:11 GMT X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4522.1200 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4522.1200 Xref: archiver1.google.com comp.lang.ada:8844 Date: 2001-06-18T14:19:11+00:00 List-Id: I have said here before that the best way to get Ada out of the "niche market" and into the "mass market" would be to get a really nice, integrated development kit into a shrink-wrap box with a book and get this in a corner gondola display at CompUSA, et alia. Thousands of programmers are totally unaware of the existence of Ada and they don't stand much of a chance of becoming aware of it when the number of books about Ada on the shelves at Barnes & Noble, Fryes, etc. is at or near zero and their exposure to Ada products on the shelves at Best Buy or CompUSA is at a similar level. Its good that Ada gets taught in some schools. However, a *lot* of programming is done by high-school geek hobbyists or non-computer professionals, etc. who tend to pick things up based on what they see in trade rags and store shelves. A nice, inexpensive, shrink-wrap Ada kit with textbook and a "Why Ada" introduction at a relatively simple level would help expose them to it. They might get excited about learning some new things and start generating that "critical mass" that would make Ada a market dominator. Of course, all that takes promotional $$$ and Ada lacks a big institutional investor. I don't know how to get out of that except to possibly look at some of the big computer companies and see if one of them could get sold on the idea of hawking Ada as their own kind of product distinction. Maybe we need to hire the guy who invented the "Pet Rock" and see if he has any ideas about promoting Ada. (I always thought the DoD did an absolutely horrible job of promoting Ada once they invented it. Had they hired a Madison Avenue firm & paid for an advertising campaign, Ada would not be suffering from the situation it is in now.) MDC -- Marin David Condic Senior Software Engineer Pace Micro Technology Americas www.pacemicro.com Enabling the digital revolution e-Mail: marin.condic@pacemicro.com Web: http://www.mcondic.com/ "Gary Scott" wrote in message news:3B2B73D0.F5E67C01@flash.net... > Hi, > > It seems to me that in today's market, for a language to survive and be > used in anything but a niche manner, requires making the masses aware. > The very small numbers of people using news groups may be highly aware > of what's available (and possibly what's superior), but less than 2 > percent of the 2000 or so programmers at my company are aware that Ada > is even an option for students and would never consider using it for > their personal projects, even though a significant portion of them are > required to use it at work. They have no idea about GNAT or ADAPOWER. > All they know is M$oft promotes the heck out of C++ and it's available > at Best Buy, CompUSA, and Fry's, and "management is forcing me to use a > dead language". Ada is not my favorite language...but it's my second > favorite language and I could live comfortably in an Ada-dominant > world. Ada SHOULD have a better chance of putting a dent in C++ usage > than my favorite (dead) language, but doesn't seem to be doing as well, > at least in the last 3-5 years. I wish my favorite language well, it is > evolving well (generally well designed) considering the baggage it must > carry (albeit very very (very) slowly). But unless something > significant changes in the way standards are developed (meaning rate of > progress), it will be perpetually 5-10 years behind where it should be. > Ada is already "state of the art" (I obviously don't like some aspects > of it's definition of "state of the art"). I expect more marketing > (darnit)! >