Re: Advice on selling Ada to a C shop

[BrianG <briang000@gmail.com>]

Nasser M. Abbasi wrote:
> On 6/20/2010 5:29 PM, Ludovic Brenta wrote:
> 
>> Show them that no, C is not "good enough".
>>
> 
> This is what I said earlier. show them, but with small clear code 
> examples,  side-by-side, Ada vs. C, show why in each example, Ada is 
> better.
> 
As others have said, larger examples are better for showing the 
advantages of Ada.  However, this may make for a less practical 
demonstration.  In this case, another way is to use examples from your 
(the OP's) actual code.  Show areas that have been the source of 
problems, and how Ada could avoid those problems.

More generally, I would (in an ideal world) look at the problems that 
occur in the entire development process and what changes would avoid them.

> Making lectures to C programmer about how much better Ada is in the 
> abstract, will not work, it will sound like a politician making a 
> typical speech about how good a job they will do if elected.
> 
> btw, if someone is really good in C, and very careful, and stick to the 
> standard, they can produce solid code.
> 
> Many large applications are written in C all the time, the problem I 
> think, is that it takes more skill and effort to produce as reliable 
> code in C as with Ada, but it can be done, given more effort, skill, 
> time and money, and lots of coffee.
> 
Coffee?  Coffee?  I thought "real coders" always relied on Mt.Dew, or 
Jolt.  Or today maybe Red Bull, etc. :-)

The other problem is that the time is usually spent at the tail end of 
development (testing) rather than at the front end.

> --Nasser
> 
> 
--Bg