Re: "is ada dead?" A challenge for all of us?

[Michael Erdmann <michael.erdmann@snafu.de>]

comp.lang.ada-request@ada.eu.org schrieb:

> Von: "McDoobie" <chris@dont.spam.me>
> R�ckantwort: comp.lang.ada@ada.eu.org
> Firma: The Caffinated Corps.
> An: comp.lang.ada@ada.eu.org
> Diskussionsforen: comp.lang.ada
> Referenzen: <mailman.994606630.15710.comp.lang.ada@ada.eu.org>
>
> In article <mailman.994606630.15710.comp.lang.ada@ada.eu.org>, Michael
> Erdmann <michael.erdmann@snafu.de> wrote:
>
> > Such question is always creating the wish in me to prove that it is not
> ....................................
> > If you look as the open source market which is mainly driven by the
> > commonly available operating system (e.g Linux) you will find that C,
> > C++ and a lot of other lagnuages are mutch more dominant then Ada.
> > Typical for this situation is e.g. the fact that most of the Linux
> > distributions claim to support Ada, but the compiler is in fact  NOT
> > part of the distribution. Or how many applications of a typlical Linux
> > distribution are written in Ada? I think the answer is about 0!
> .................................................
> >
> > In order to overcome this situation, the interest of the peoples asking
> > such questions should be attracted by interresting Ada written
> > applications, in order to change there attitude in such a way, that they
> > at least ask "..is Ada an alternative for my project?".
> >
> > The challenge for us is to gather peoples in the Ada community building
> > such open source applications.
> >
> > I think good starting point for this was and is the ALT but without the
> > "non commercial" effort of the whole  Ada community, this initiative is
> > doomed!
> >
> > If the Ada community fails to meet this challenge, then at least for the
> > "open source/Linux"  domain the language has to be considred in fact  as
> > dead, just because nobody needs Ada there!
> >
> ............................................................
>
>
> It seems to me that a way to get Ada more mainstream in the Linux world
> would be for us Ada programmers to start up alot more of our own projects.

Yes. If you look at source forge there are about 5000 C based projects
and about 45 based upon Ada.

> Yeah, I know the old tale about re-inventing the wheel. But think about it,
> the concept of the wheel, in todays world is an abstract concept. Who's to
> say that with Ada we cant develope better wheels. Better mail servers,
> better Web applications, better ad infinitum? I would also dare to say that
> Ada makes it so much easier to develope better replacements.

May be writing clones of already existing software. If Ada is realy
the better approach developement and maintenance efforts will be
lower. This will have a significant impact on the willingnes of
distributors to include such software. But this is a long way till
then!

> Heres a challenge...one that I'm taking up myself. For each Ada developer
> in the group here to find a piece of software that they like and find useful,
> and do thier own little re-implementation of it in Ada95, with all the little
> benefits that Ada95 offers implemented in addition to what comes standard
> with the application.

It is nice to see that i have been understood.

> Personally, I think the server side is where this type of challenge would
> truly show Ada95 for the gem that I've found it to be.

This is where i completly agree. Ada is made to make relaible software
as it is required for servers (may be an open http server like zope)!

> It doesnt have to be a huge project. Just a something simple. An email app,
> a database frontend/client, blah blah blah.

I fact i am already working on such a project (see http://gnade.sourceforge.net/)
but the resonance in the community i quite low. But we are still looking for
peoples to build and SQLplus clone!

> Then we can submit those new applications to the Open Source community,
> or do whatever else with them.
>
> Anyways, I figure if the developer likes the application and finds it useful,
> then it shouldn't be too hard for them to develope interest in doing thier
> own little implementation.

I think, the problem is more deep. Most of the Ada developers are proffesinaly
engaged. This is different to the peoples that are working on Linux these are
often students and enthusiasts which are not completly engaged in professinal
work.

> What do you think?

More or less this is exaclty what i have in mind.