Re:Time safety is more important than memory safety
by timbit42 on Monday February 17, 2020 @05:55PM
(#22351726)
Because back in the 1970's, Pascal and C were the two languages battling it out. At the time C seemed like the best option of the two, but now that everything is online, we realize Pascal is the better option of the two.
Re:Time safety is more important than memory safety
by AnimalMuppet on Monday February 17, 2020 @11:48PM
(#22353530)
benibela doesn't sound like s/he is talking about the 1970s. Rather, the point seems to be crashes today.
But no, the people back then weren't fools wandering in darkness. C won not just because it appeared better, but because it was better. Pascal appeared better - it had better theory, and a better story. But for actually writing software, C was better. Even with all the "shoot yourself in the foot" potential, C was still better. Programming in Pascal was like picking your nose with boxing gloves on compared to programming in C. (I exaggerate, but Pascal was noticeably - and frustratingly - clumsier to use.)
It may have crashed because it was written in C/C++, perhaps. But on the exact same grounds, why not say "It crashed because it was not written in Haskell"? (Or any of several other languages.) Why Pascal in particular?