Re: A scapegoat once again :(

["Vinzent Hoefler" <0439279208b62c95f1880bf0f8776eeb@t-domaingrabbing.de>]

Hyman Rosen wrote:

> But look at this: <http://www.swep-eds.com/XD%20Ada/XD%20Ada.html>
>
[...]
>      XD Ada is the standard Ada development cross-compiler for the
>      four-nation Fighter Aircraft Replacement programme through the
>      Eurofighter consortia. In the USA, it was selected by Boeing for
>      their 777 and F-22 applications.

Well, that info is a little bit outdated, I can assure you - at least
for the European part.

>      Users of XD Ada can be assured of comprehensive, long-term support
>      on current or specific versions of the tools.
>
> How much do you want to bet that the F-22 software still needs to be
> developed on this ancient programming environment? If so, it's hardly
> any wonder that using it would cause significant delays.

I can tell you about "delays" (actually it's more like a pipe-line) in
software upgrades in Avionics. The paperwork to be done is enormous. Even
if you "hack" in a little code to just change a minor aspect of the software
it needs to get tested at various stages, formalized with a lot of design,
test, and $whatever documentation and maybe it gets flight-tested at some
point in time. But before it actually starts running inside a real
customer-delivered aircraft, I'd estimate a time-span of 24 months since
the first change in requirements were settled.

And that's not likely to change with _any_ programming language.


Vinzent.

-- 
A C program is like a fast dance on a newly waxed dance floor by people carrying
razors.
   --  Waldi Ravens