Re: How do you choose your programming language ?

On Mon, 21 Nov 2005 10:41:10 -0000
"ik_5" <idokan-Re5JQEeQqe8AvxtiuMwx3w@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> OK, I do not want to start a language war, but I want to give a side
> that most of you do not see.
> 
> As many of you know, my favorite programming language is FPC (Free
> Pascal Compiler). Now before you are going to say a lot (usually
> wrong, but some negative things on the language are true.. don't get
> me wrong) things about the language, let me give you some of my point
> of view about the myths about the language or at least two of them...
> 
[...]
> 
> The motto of Pascal programming is "make the hardest thing to be
> easy". Thats why documents such as "why not to use Pascal" wrote
> things such as "Everyone could write programs if they will use Pascal,
> we should continue using COBOL/Fortran". And thats just for the preview ;)
> 

can't say these documents sound very smart ;-)

[..]

> 
> This compiler is one of the fastest compilers exists at the Open
> source arsenal (yes much faster then gcc, VC, BCB, but not faster then
> Delphi that uses threads to compile, while FPC does not).
> 

AFAIK gcc is known to be slow and doesn't necessarily provide the smallest
code, but it does provide good optimized code. Being faster then gcc isn't such
an achievement.

[...]

> 
> FPC gives you a lot of ways to use classes, and other language tools
> such as AnsiString that will give you the feeling of a script language
> rather then a strict compiled programing language.

C++ has strings with length checking and streams support, not that I like them
very much though.

> If you wish to use a function inside a class for example, that does
> not require the class to be created/initialized, you can call the
> function directly without creating the class itself.
> The AnsiString type supports a very long string (if I remember
> correctly, it can store up to 4 mega of string by default), the
> compiler places code that handle length checking, so you do not need
> to wary about buffer overflows, and it works much father then Null
> terminated strings. 
> 
[...]
> 
> So, why don't you use Pascal if only part of what I say is true (and
> all of it is true :P) ? First of all I think it's the name and the
> connection of the name you have for "Pascal". 
> 

It's more an issue of the ability to work on existing code bases. Its not often
that you get to start a new project from scratch and companies look for people
who are able to debug/fix/modify existing code. People choose languages among
other reasons by the requirements of existing job offers.

> Secondly The industry takes only languages that was giving to them
> after chowing and a lot of money investment on them (take Java and C#
> as two examples). 
> 

Management chooses programing languages based on hype (thats what they know)
and the availability of good programmers who know the language.

> I'm starting to hear "but no one really uses this language". Many
> people uses Windows, many developers write programs with buffer
> overflows, and most of them do not try to understand whats going on
> with things that they did not pay money to know, and things that no
> one gave them to swallow the chowed information. And thats true also
> for many popular languages, when people does not really know anything,
> but think they are the smartest people on the plant, at least on
> everything that regarded to what they suppose to know. People still
> give more credits to diploma (do you want to buy one instead of
> learning ? I know some good bulk mail that offers that :P) then to
> people that actually learned things... Most of you in this forum knows
> that from first hand experience.
> 

Its easier to filter people using diplomas first. Since there is an overflow of
applicants each easier to use that first and then test whomever is left.

> So, if you know that there is a tool that can give you more power and
> less work, will you use it ? it seems that it's the wrong question. 
> 

Question is, do you know and how much work it will take to learn it compared to
how many problems it will solve.

> So how do you choose your programming language, and will you use FPC
> if it will not have the name Pascal inside, but will deliver you a
> faster code development and and more stable code, in less time then
> C#, Java, C, C++, VB and others ?
> 

Each one has its merits and downfalls, which is better depends on the job at 
hand.

> P.S.
> If I'm sounds like attacking or making fights, here, then I'm sorry
> from a head.. thats not my intention. 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>  
> Yahoo! Groups Links
> 
> 
> 
>  
> 
> 
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