Re: Is Linux right for Embedded?

[Ted Dennison<dennison@telepath.com>]

In article <9pfeiu$cfr$1@nh.pace.co.uk>, Marin David Condic says...
>reasons why a new language might be advantageous. People change languages
>for different projects all the time - why is it A Good Thing(tm) if the
>language is Java (or insert the Language Du Jour here) but A Bad Thing(tm)
..
>with better products built more efficiently that way. If your job ads read
>"I need Microsoft Visual C++/IBM-PC/Windows95 programmers..." what will you
>do with them if Linux becomes the hot craze? Or if the architecture changes
>to Sun/Unix? Or (God Forbid!) some *other* language becomes the hot item
>this week? Makes more sense to me to find adaptable engineers, 'cause the
>world of computers is *always* changing.

That's one of the reasons I think Ada is a good choice. If you do your software
right, it is probably going to end up lasting for many years. Thus if you choose
a language that has *nothing* to offer other than it present-day market share or
"coolness", you might as well choose the one with the prettiest box, for all the
good it will have do you 5 years down the line.

Ada isn't about market share or slick marketing or cool logos. Ada is about
writing fast, bullet-proof software, period. Those are timeless values that will
*never* quit paying you dividends, no matter what language is cool 3 years(or
weeks) from now.

---
T.E.D.    homepage   - http://www.telepath.com/dennison/Ted/TED.html
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