Should I choose Ada, SPARK, or Rust over C/C++? (2024)

Re:Should I choose Ada, SPARK, or Rust over C/C++? (2024) by bitwize on Sunday October 05, 2025 @11:59PM (#45487527)

You can actually do this in C as well. The Windows API has all sorts of handle types that were originally all one type: HANDLE; but by wrapping a HANDLE in various one-member structs were able to derive different handle types that couldn't be intermixed with each other in a type-safe way without some casting jiggery-pokery.

It's just much, much easier and more ergonomic in Ada.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Should I choose Ada, SPARK, or Rust over C/C++? (2024) by pjmlp on Monday October 06, 2025 @06:52AM (#45489954)

Fun fact, that many are not aware, mostly because this is Windows 3.x knowledge and one needed the right source to learn about this.

There was a header only library on the Windows SDK that would wrap those HANDLEs into more specific types, that would still be compatible, while providing a more high level API to use them from C.

Unfortunely there is not much left on the Internet about it, but this article provides some insight,

https://www.codeguru.com/windows/using-message-crackers-in-t...

Naturally it was saner just to use TP/C++ alongside OWL, C++ with MFC back then, or VB.

[ Parent | on HN ]