Well, I know that Hal Hart and Oliver Cole are wrestling with a reply
to DDJ.  I don't care, I'm just an "Average Ada Joe" who got miffed at
the DDJ article.  Felt I had to write something.  It's probably more
rude than it needs to be, but that's just me :-)  I'm posting it here
for your enjoyment


> Subject: An Ode to Ada?
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Date: Mon, 30 Jun 1997 07:36:00 -0500 (CDT)
>
> In the words of Mark Twain, "Rumors of my death have been greatly
> exaggerated."  It was disappointing to read Mr. Kim's commentary on
> the DoD's choice to end the "mandate" of Ada as their primary
> programming language.  I am among many, however, who applaud the DoD's
> decision.  Ada is healthy enough to stand on its own against the two
> competitors: C++ and Java.  As a developer very experienced in all
> three languages, I choose Ada wherever I can.  I can generate Java
> bytecode directly from Ada, allowing me to quickly deliver web-based
> applets in a language significantly richer than Java.  And for those
> that argue the Ada is too "verbose", it should be noted that the
> Ada 95 Booch Components are approx 15% _smaller_ than the same
> Booch Components in C++!  Mr. Kim's arguments against tools have some
> merit, but the most common C++ tools, those that perform
> bounds-checking and leak-detection, are practically useless for Ada.
> Those checking features can be turned on and off at a switch from the compiler.
> Of course, most vendors don't deliver Ada interfaces to their
> products, but Ada comes with a standard mechanism for incorporating C,
> Fortran, and COBOL interfaces right away (a novel way to use legacy
> code in web apps: Write Ada applets in Java bytecode, and let your
> server apps, also written in Ada, make calls to your legacy systems).
> Compiler and tool prices are now on an even playing field with C++
> tools, and Ada already has the advantage of being a stable ISO standard
> with optional compiler certification.  It will be at least another two
> years before we see that in C++.  It's true that there are fewer
> people trained in Ada, but my personal experience is that C people
> reach "expert" level significantly faster (about a factor of two) in
> Ada than they do in C++.
>
> Market forces, indeed.  I'll remember my parent's admonishment in this
> case, "If Eugene Eric Kim jumped off a cliff, would you do it to?"  No
> thanks, Mr. Kim, I'll just watch you and the rest of the lemmings do
> your thing.
>
> David Weller
> [log in to unmask]
> Author, Ada 95 Booch Components (www.rivatech.com/booch)
>