That was then, now is now. Today, at least in europe, big companies do care about standards. Go ahead, try proposing using a Compiler that does not implement any standard like C,C++ or Ada in the Automotive industry.
As for the rest, i agree.
Re:The cost of forsaking C
by nickpsecurity on Wednesday October 05, 2016 @02:04PM
(#12646221)
Safety-critical industries here and over there are regulated by standards. They're an exception. Average, embedded system can use whatever it wants so long as it produces code to run on target board. Making your tooling generate C as output is easiest way to cheat. It's what I did with my BASIC 4GL. People were none the wiser.
What are you talking about? There was a C standard because so many groups picked up C. The Ada mandate actually reduced its uptake with a bit of a rebound latter on when the tech itself was better (esp compilers). C++ got uptake before a standard plus fed into the C standard. So, no, the lack of a standard isn't stopping adoption by industry outside select firms that won't pick up tech unless it has a standards document which often isn't even accurate.
What industry does care about are compilers, IDE's, existing libraries, available talent, ecosystem, who they can pay for support. These things aren't at a level they like yet. Adoption stays low.
Note: Most infrastructure is written in C due to talent and compiler availability more than anything. That's what most embedded people tell me.