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=-0.9 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,FREEMAIL_FROM, FREEMAIL_REPLY autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Thread: 103376,382fcf8feeefdd50 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,domainid0,public,usenet X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit Path: g2news1.google.com!news2.google.com!Xl.tags.giganews.com!border1.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.giganews.com!local02.nntp.dca.giganews.com!nntp.earthlink.com!news.earthlink.com.POSTED!not-for-mail NNTP-Posting-Date: Tue, 15 Jul 2008 18:35:45 -0500 From: "Phaedrus" Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada References: <185ee7f9-9d4f-4f49-8dbe-6b623b8a8223@c58g2000hsc.googlegroups.com> Subject: Re: computer language used to program Mars Lander Date: Tue, 15 Jul 2008 16:35:55 -0700 X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2900.2180 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.2180 X-RFC2646: Format=Flowed; Original Message-ID: X-Usenet-Provider: http://www.giganews.com NNTP-Posting-Host: 71.92.210.194 X-Trace: sv3-fjY0EI1EfRCNKJWE9+PMexzILt+2wGE5XXmjRrE+nY/HAo+VTcxTiPlPM0TXl1iVIgsQBCY+mFfeBJ9!SckPVSmW5Gi0VpeMv28SkGbyNuFmgBc8lMUgvm+QlPDub6SarNTFki22Bk0XYHO+5997oocSycwr!NZghI8ebo6cMYwED4W3a7FwTTRaySy16yn0= X-Abuse-and-DMCA-Info: Please be sure to forward a copy of ALL headers X-Abuse-and-DMCA-Info: Otherwise we will be unable to process your complaint properly X-Postfilter: 1.3.39 Xref: g2news1.google.com comp.lang.ada:1163 Date: 2008-07-15T16:35:55-07:00 List-Id: "Stephen Leake" wrote in message news:uvdz7uzeu.fsf@nasa.gov... > "jhc0033@gmail.com" writes: > >> Interesting article I came across on Slashdot: >> >> http://developers.slashdot.org/developers/08/07/10/213211.shtml >> >> They are using C at JPL to program Mars Lander and just about >> everything now! Not Ada. Anyone got an explanation? > > They are comfortable with their current tools, and simply refuse to > consider others. > > I run into that attitude all the time. Even when they are considering > adding tools like static analyzers, they won't consider changing > languages. It's extremely frustrating! > > In the short run, sticking with what you know is safe. In the long > run, it is a significant loss of productivity. JPL and many, many > other places are sticking with the safe route. > > -- > -- Stephe Actually, JPL did try Ada for a few projects. In the late early '90s they got the contract from the Army to work on the All Source Analysis System (ASAS), a very large project. Also, unless my memory fails me they also did some (if not all) of the Cassini software in Ada, and I believe they did other projects in Ada, too. While Cassini (being a relatively small, well contained project) went well, ASAS was another thing altogether. The problem isn't that they won't try Ada, the problem is that when they did, they didn't get the results they wanted. Remember back when Ada was the buzzword to have on your resume? That was when they tried Ada, and some of the contractors they hired to "show them the way" weren't even sure how to spell Ada, much less get anything done in it. (A VERY high priced contractor on ASAS admitted to me that he had never even seen Ada code before being hired for his "expert" knowledge. Amazingly, they never caught on, even after he went on to greener pastures they were still raving about him!) Sadly, these blunders and others don't get remembered as "how NOT to manage a software project", they get filed under "Ada sucks". We need to convince them to give her another chance. --Brian