Re: computer language used to program Mars Lander

["Chris Thomasson" <xxx@xxx.xxx>]

"Default User" <defaultuserbr@yahoo.com> wrote in message 
news:6ea1d5F65269U1@mid.individual.net...
> Chris Thomasson wrote:
>
>> "Paul Hsieh" <websnarf@gmail.com> wrote in message
>> news:13a2f4f0-6ec1-4570-b6bf-1621cfb32db2@a2g2000prm.googlegroups.com.
>
>> > Indeed.  Ada is used by the military, because they have much more
>> > sophisticated hardware in tanks and fighter jets.
>>
>> Is this a trolling attempt? Anyway, the military uses C++ for all
>> critical system software in state-of-the-art fighter-bombers because
>> they have much more sophisticated hardware:
>
> We did quite a bit of code for avionics flight systems for military
> aircraft in C++. It ran on top of an RTOS and there were certain
> restrictions in the programming. Dynamic memory was only allocated at
> startup, for instance.

Sounds pretty smart to me. IMHO, its nice that C++ is flexible enough
to work well under some fairly harsh, but necessary restrictions. Also,
IMVHO, it does not really matter what programming language is used because
in the end its all up to the programmer to "get it right". Even an ADA-
based system could contain subtle logic bugs. That would be very bad if
one of those nasty bugs revealed a code-path which could open the bomb
bay doors, arm something and let it loose!

:^o