Re: The status of C


>> And I am ofcourse not talking about C++ or C#. I think the lack of object
>> orientation and garbage collection causes better programming discipline
>> needed for harder projects anyway.
>
> Working without these features might be a good way to _learn_ better
> programming discipline, but good discipline combined with helpful features
> is better than either one on its own.

So the question is: Are C++ features helpful ? That depends :-)

>> Is C still the language of choice for serious programming?
>
> Sometimes. Use the right tool for the job; sometimes C is the right
> tool for the job, sometimes it isn't.
> Keep in mind that technical advantages are never the only reason, and
> often not the primary reason, why a particular tool is or isn't right
> for a particular job. (But if they're ignored entirely that may be a
> sign that something is wrong.)
>
>

[...]

> The biggest reason for this is that additional features of "more advanced"
> languages aren't necessary for the components of the system that I get
> assigned to (mostly processing-intensive), and C is the language I'm most
> familiar with and also the easiest to get other languages (often useful
> in other parts of the system) to play nicely with.

Now you see that depends ;-)

> [1] It's worth noting that 20 years ago I was 5 years old and had never
> seen a computer, so my knowledge of the state of the world then
> is built solely on second- and third-hand knowledge, but I'd be
> surprised if anybody who was around 20 years ago would disagree with
> this assessment of the difference in the state of the world.

That must have depended on task: Fortran has always been the preferred
language in scientific computing.

1985... Turbo Pascal had just showed up I think.

But ya know... I wasn't very old either. Yep, that's right, 5 :-)

.

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