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From: sdm7g@elvis.med.Virginia.EDU (Steven D. Majewski)
Subject: Re: Comparison of languages for CS1 and CS2
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References: <DBEwuo.8L@world.std.com> <bob-1107951224410001@comp_ctr245.sonoma.edu> <3tus9g$7tr@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM> <fjm.104.000FF1E0@ti.com>
Date: Wed, 19 Jul 1995 21:00:08 GMT
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Xref: glinda.oz.cs.cmu.edu comp.edu:13427 comp.lang.ada:32925 comp.lang.c++:139497 comp.lang.modula2:12144 comp.lang.scheme:13278

In article <fjm.104.000FF1E0@ti.com>, Fred J. McCall <fjm@ti.com> wrote:
>In article <3tus9g$7tr@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM> dweller@Starbase.NeoSoft.COM (David Weller) writes:
>
>>Why not:
>>        "You might want to find another language that's just as
>>        powerful, just as efficient (if not more), and was designed
>>        to avoid the common errors that most people make.  One that is
>>        intended to suit a more natural style of programming."
>
>And just which language would that be, because the description most certainly 
>does NOT fit Ada.
>
>

 I don't use Ada. I have no special love for Ada. I was one of those
who, when it first came out was of the opinion that it was an unwieldy,
committee designed, kitchen-sink DoD-oriented language. 
 I have moderated that opinion somewhat - largely because: now that
we have C++, Ada doesn't look so bad anymore! 
 It might not be my first choice (for this topic of a CS teaching
language, probably Scheme) but it wouldn't be my last. 

 Sorry if this seems like 'damning with faint praise' to all of you
Ada fans out there, but I just wanted to remind everyone that most
of the appraisal of Ada being a big, complicated language is from
back when it was being compared to C, Pascal or Modula-2 -- *NOT* C++ 
( against which it looks almost slim and elegant! )


---|  Steven D. Majewski   (804-982-0831)  <sdm7g@Virginia.EDU>  |---
---|  Computer Systems Engineer          University of Virginia  |---
---|  Department of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics  |---
---|  Box 449 Health Science Center    Charlottesville,VA 22908  |---
 [ "The grass is always greener, except at t=0" - Stan Kelly-Bootle ]
