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From: Crash <wakko@starbase1.htls.lib.il.us>
Subject: Re: Should I learn C or Pascal?
Date: 1996/07/20
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Date: 1996-07-20T00:00:00+00:00
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On 19 Jul 1996, Robert Dewar wrote:

><O<)"
><O<)        Never, never, never try to start learning a language before you
><O<)        learn how to program.  A good algorithm simply cannot be replaced,
><O<)        and learning how to write an alogrithm is in programming, not
><O<)        in learning a language.  You can sit down and read a hundred books
><O<)        about how to use pointers and linked lists in c++, and you still
><O<)        won't know how to use them in a good manner, if at all."
><O<)
><O<)
><O<)I am very familiar with the highly unusual approach Georgia Tech takes, but
><O<)I find the above remark rubbish. You cannot express algorithms unless you
><O<)use a language to express them in, and for my taste, a well chosen 
><O<)programming language is as good choice as anything.
><O<)
><O<)

An algorithm is just a set of instructions on how to accomplish a task. An
algorithm does not depend at all on any sort of programming "language". In
fact, I was taught that you should write out your "game plan" and psuedo
code before you even touch any sort of syntax in any language. Yes, I do
tend to write up my psuedo-code in a C-like syntax frequently but you
don't need to.

     Loop until variable is equal to 7
	Add 1 to variable
	Print out the following string to screen: ;-)
	end of loop

There's an algorithm written in plain english. It's a stupid algorithm,
I'll give you that, but one none the less and it's not written in any
programming "lanugage/syntax" I have ever worked with.