🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <Bs23z9.LK1@apollo.hp.com>, johnf@apollo.hp.com (John Francis) writes:
|> I don't have to imagine it - I've seen it.  In fact I wrote some of it.
|> Domain/OS (the operating system for Apollo workstations) is written in Pascal.
|> It's no more or less of a nightmare than real UN*X(tm).

What happens when you want to port it to another machine?  O.K. maybe
no one will.

|> Now can we please all stop the "my language is better than your language"
|> wars?  Without knowing all the constraints, it is impossible to make any
|> meaningful comparisons.  for example:

I wasn't trying to say that "C is better than Pascal", I was redressing
the balance.  You seemed to be putting down C, so I felt that it was time
to step in and air my own views.  I agree that both languages have their
good points and bad points, but when it comes to the crunch, C is definitely
more portable, and arguably more efficient.

|> If portability is the major concern, then obvously you should choose C.
|> If the code is only going to run on your computer, use whatever you like.
|> TP has a (much) faster compile-load-run cyle, so using that instead of
|> a C compiler can be a big win, especially on a slower machine like a 286.

True, but a good programmer shouldn't spend his or her time compiling
and recompiling.  If you spend time trying to figure out where something
went wrong, you'll spend less and less time compiling, testing, compiling,
testing.  This should never be used as a reason for choosing a particular
language over another.

|> As for the two languages:  any half-way competent programmer can work
|> equally well in either language.  Obviously each language has its own
|> set of features you will miss when programming in the other: in my case
|> I like Pascal variant records, and C conditional expressions.

True, it very much depends on preference.  I used to program in Pascal,
until I discovered C.  I don't think I want to go back now.

|> -- 
|> John Francis                                johnf@apollo.hp.com
|> The world can be divided into two classes :-
|>  those who divide people into two classes, and those who don't.

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| Bruce Stenning    |                      |\/   o\ . ARGGH.... Stop eating  |
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| bruce@inmos.co.uk |                      |/\  __/       my .sig file...    |
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