Only if you write C code in Objective-C.
> PLUS it is a syntactical nightmare. [whatTheHell:is this:shit];
Honestly, get over it. This is largely a surface-level detail that makes no difference once youve used the language for more than a week. I take it you have similar complaints against Ruby, Python, Lisp, or any other language that dares to break ranks with the C++/Java syntax idiom.
> Is ARC really that much of a savior here?
Yes, manual memory management is one of the main things that C/C++ programmers seem to consistently screw up.
There's no reason why memory management _should_ be something that C++ programmers screw up now with containers like smart_ptr and std::string. Yes, if you malloc/free stuff and use things like memcpy, you're playing with fire, but the whole point of "modern C++" is that we have better and safer alternatives.
On the other hand, Obj-C message passing (which really means method calls that are resolved at runtime) is another way, like manual memory management, to really shoot yourself in the foot if you make a mistake.
> I take it you have similar complaints against Ruby, Python, Lisp, or any other language that dares to break ranks with the C++/Java syntax idiom.
I actually don't. Forced named parameters and "array brackets" denote method calls are arguably poor choices for syntax.
On the other hand, getting rid of semicolons and enforcing whitespace a la Python is okay, and Lisp is really just an extension of RPN.
The point is your point that I dislike anything by default that is "not C/C++/Java" is actually pretty incorrect.
I do have opinions, but that isn't the basis through which they are formed, and quite honestly, I'm offended that you even made such an assumption about me in the first place.
> Honestly, get over it.
Bad advice, I'm allowed to have an opinion (and I do substantiate it above).
Regardless, I have "gotten over it" given that a large portion of my day job is spent writing Obj-C, and while I do like it better than Java as a language overall (even not having to deal with JNI for interop is a dream), god help the syntax.
You've already made the point that my opinion is a popular one. To wit, I find it amusing that the Google autocomplete for "Objective C syntax" is "horrible."
[whatTheHell:is this:shit];
Is ARC really that much of a savior here? At least method calls get resolved at compile time.