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From: 18k11tm001@sneakemail.com (Russ)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada
Subject: How to make Ada a dominant language
Date: 30 Jul 2001 00:08:56 -0700
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Date: 2001-07-30T07:08:57+00:00
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The Ada programming language is based on an excellent fundamental
design, but it is much less popular than it could be because it has an
awkward, "klunky" syntax. I propose to clean up the syntax by
borrowing from Python. Python is very popular high level "scripting"
language with a reputation for promoting clean, clear code. The new
syntax could be translated into Ada95 syntax with a relatively simple
"preprocessor," so existing compilers could still be used, old code
would continue to work, and programmers could continue to use the old
syntax if they wish.

Here are the syntax changes I propose:

1. Eliminate the "end" keyword and make the indentation structure an
inherent part of the syntax, as in Python.

2. Eliminate the requirement for a semicolon after each executable
statement, but allow semicolons for combining multiple statements on a
line, as in Python.

3. Use "=" rather than ":=" for assignment, as in Python. (Use "=="
for equality testing if necessary to avoid confusion with assignment.)

4. Use "=" instead of "=>" for passing arguments by named association,
as in Python.

5. Reverse the backward declaration syntax. For example, use "integer:
count" instead of "count: integer", or use "integer in: count" instead
of "count: in integer".

6. Eliminate the "is" keyword.

7. Let "use" imply "with" so the tops of files need not be cluttered
with both "with" and "use" for the same package.

A flag on the first line of a source file (e.g., the string "Ada01"
anywhere within a comment) could be used to tell the compiler that the
file needs to be translated to Ada95 before compiling.

With these changes, I believe Ada would become much more popular and
could eventually become a dominant language. The resulting new
language could be called "Ada01," or something like that.

Honestly now, which of the following two statements is cleaner and
clearer?

    count: integer := 0;  -- old syntax

    integer: count = 0  -- new syntax

Russ Paielli
http://RussP.org