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=-1.9 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00 autolearn=ham autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 X-Google-Language: ENGLISH,ASCII-7-bit X-Google-Thread: 103376,38c827f7e800d317 X-Google-Attributes: gid103376,public X-Google-ArrivalTime: 2003-06-28 02:46:55 PST Path: archiver1.google.com!news1.google.com!newsfeed.stanford.edu!logbridge.uoregon.edu!uio.no!ntnu.no!not-for-mail From: Preben Randhol Newsgroups: comp.lang.ada Subject: Re: conversion Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2003 09:46:54 +0000 (UTC) Organization: Norwegian university of science and technology Message-ID: References: NNTP-Posting-Host: kiuk0152.chembio.ntnu.no X-Trace: tyfon.itea.ntnu.no 1056793614 14346 129.241.83.78 (28 Jun 2003 09:46:54 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@itea.ntnu.no NNTP-Posting-Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2003 09:46:54 +0000 (UTC) User-Agent: slrn/0.9.7.4 (Linux) Xref: archiver1.google.com comp.lang.ada:39868 Date: 2003-06-28T09:46:54+00:00 List-Id: Alexander Kopilovitch wrote: > Preben Randhol wrote: > >> > Certainly, a chorus tells you that Ada is not C, but what about >> > Pascal, which has much more resemblance with Ada? Pascal isn't C, >> > it does not rely heavily upon pointers, but at the same time it has >> > quite good and usable strings. >> >>Oh I remembered when we had to use Pascal in some introductory >>programming course at the university that there was several machines >>crashing due to that the students didn't get the pointers correctly. > > Is it all you remember about Pascal? If so that, perhaps, you should > not be much surprised when other people associate Ada with Ariane 5 > crash only. I also remember problematic syntax where you should not put ";" in some cases. This most students got wrong. Anyway it has been 10 years since I look at Pascal, but I think I should be able to read it. > Anyway, why you switched to the Pascal pointers from the theme of > strings? Pascal is not C, and Pascal strings aren't naturally > associated with pointers. No, I was commenting on what was written (se above) about pointer. I didn't say Pascal didn't have good strings as I don't remember how they worked now. Must look it up. > Finally, as you mention those dangerous pointers in Pascal, let me > quote the "Programming in Ada 95" by John Barnes (2nd edition, 1998), > Chapter 10, Access Types, p.171 : > > "Playing with pointers is like playing with fire. Fire is perhaps the > most important tool known to man. Carefully used, fire brings enormous > benefits, but when fire gets out of control, disaster strikes. > Pointers have similar characteristics but are well tamed in the form > of access types in Ada." Yes? Not sure I see your point with this quote though. Preben -- Ada95 is good for you. http://www.crystalcode.com/codemage/MainMenu/Coding/Ada/IntroducingAda.php