From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: X-Spam-Status: No, score=-0.3 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00, REPLYTO_WITHOUT_TO_CC autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 103376,8623fab5750cd6aa X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public Path: controlnews3.google.com!news1.google.com!newshub.sdsu.edu!elnk-nf2-pas!newsfeed.earthlink.net!stamper.news.pas.earthlink.net!newsread2.news.pas.earthlink.net.POSTED!01cc3b7c!not-for-mail Reply-To: "Richard Riehle" From: "Richard Riehle" Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada References: <40b9c99e$0$268$edfadb0f@dread16.news.tele.dk> <40ba315a$0$254$edfadb0f@dread16.news.tele.dk> Subject: Re: Improving Ada's image - Was: 7E7 Flight Controls Electronics X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2800.1409 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2800.1409 Message-ID: Date: Mon, 31 May 2004 02:28:36 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 66.81.223.226 X-Complaints-To: abuse@earthlink.net X-Trace: newsread2.news.pas.earthlink.net 1085970516 66.81.223.226 (Sun, 30 May 2004 19:28:36 PDT) NNTP-Posting-Date: Sun, 30 May 2004 19:28:36 PDT Organization: EarthLink Inc. -- http://www.EarthLink.net Xref: controlnews3.google.com comp.lang.ada:943 Date: 2004-05-31T02:28:36+00:00 List-Id: "Per Dalgas Jakobsen" wrote in message news:40ba315a$0$254$edfadb0f@dread16.news.tele.dk... > > One way to get their attention could be to suggest Berkeley or Oxford (or > whoever makes these kinds of analyses) to make a thorough investigations > based on real business cases, with help from "people in the business" = us, > and make them do all the economical consequence maths, for very small > projects with no safety critical issues, to very large projects with all the > whistles and bells. Any Berkeley professor who espoused, or even attempted to justify the use of Ada, would be laughed out of her/his tenure. That person be subjected to a barrage of ridicule that any previous credibility would vanish like a candle flame in a dust storm. Wind River was originally founded by Berkeley students. They used to deny any connection with Ada because, from their point of view, it is the language of death and destruction, the programming language of war. In more recent times, the Wind River management seems to have softened its stance regarding Ada, and position it as simply an annoying language that they must temporarily support until it completely fades into oblivion. Berkeley has never been a friendly place for Ada. As to other universities, there is currently no incentive for professors to carry out any kind of research that might favor Ada. The scholarly journals prefer contributions that avoid Ada, the textbook publishers edit out excessive references to Ada, and the DoD is not funding any Ada research projects anymore. At this point, Ada is standing entirely on its own. It must survive on its own merits. It must endure the ridicule of the academics, the widespread misinformation among the developers, and the inane criticism of those who have never written a seropus system in the language. When one considers the obstacles that have been thrown at it during the past six years, it is a wonder that it survives at all. The fact that it continues to be the choice of many intelligent users is a tribute to its value. Those who select Ada, when there are so many other options available must be doing so for very good reasons. One must ask what those reasons are. No one can say, in this time, that Ada is only used because of the "mandate." I am of the opinion that those who choose Ada are on to something that the other developers have failed to apprehend. Perhaps, in time, the secret of Ada will be out, and more will discover that they can build better, more maintainable software with Ada, within well-bounded budgets, than they can with competing choices. Until then, those who do decide for Ada will reap the benefits of that decision while those who decide for other options will continue to do whatever it is they think they are doing. Richard Riehle