Linked by Thom Holwerda on Mon 14th Jan 2013 23:15 UTC, submitted by MOS6510
"Programming languages are living phenomena: They're born, the lucky ones that don't die in infancy live sometimes long, fruitful lives, and then inevitably enter a period of decline. Unlike real life, the decline can last many, many years as the presence of large legacy codebases means practiced hands must tend the code for decades. The more popular the language once was, the longer this period of decline will be."
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RE[3]: Comment by RareBreed
by moondevil on Tue 15th Jan 2013 12:47
in reply to "RE[2]: Comment by RareBreed"
Member since:2005-07-08
I share the same opinion, although I do like multi-paradigm languages.
I loathe the way some developers seem to try to bend a given language to use it in ever conceivable scenario.
Don't mix Software Engineering with CS names. My university degree when I took it, was called Software Engineering in my mother language, but the actual contents were what is known as CS in other countries.
RE[4]: Comment by RareBreed
by hhas on Tue 15th Jan 2013 14:21
in reply to "RE[3]: Comment by RareBreed"
Member since:2006-11-28
Don't mix Software Engineering with CS names.
I'm absolutely for the existence Software Engineering courses; after all, there's a huge need in today's world for applied software engineers, and plenty folks who desire such jobs. I just hate it when such courses call themselves 'Computer Science' [1] when the curriculum clearly is not.
Personally I think a big heaping dose of honesty is needed from universities... and from students too. Everyone's perfectly happy to distinguish between, say, Applied and Theoretical Physics, so why conflate Applied and Theoretical Computing? The only reason I can think of is ego marketing: students want to be software engineers but call themselves 'computer scientists' because that sounds cleverer.
And so everyone forgets what CS actually is and what it's meant to do: push the boundaries and [re]define the state of the art. Just as in the sciences, you need a vibrant theoretical community generating new ideas and improvements that can eventually feed into the applied world, otherwise the latter grows close-minded and stagnant. It's not healthy, but I suspect a lot in the programming world isn't what it ought to be.
[1] Which should probably be called 'Computer Math', but that's a separate gripe.
RE[3]: Comment by RareBreed
by RareBreed on Wed 16th Jan 2013 20:50
in reply to "RE[2]: Comment by RareBreed"
Member since:2011-10-10
Perhaps FP is a special case, but it only takes one mutable piece of data or a function with a side effect to make it useless (in a concurrent/parallel context).
So I agree that single paradigm languages have their place. Also, many of the things done in OOP can be done in FP but using a different way of thinking.
And I think that is the crux of the problem. People don't want to have to learn a new way of thinking. They are ok with learning new API's or even new languages that fit their mold (OO, imperative, Relational, logical etc), but having to think in a new way is too much work for many people.
Features
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/13/13 14:35 UTC
The third and final WWDC product I want to talk about is - of course - OS X 10.9 Mavericks. While iOS 7 was clearly the focus of this year's WWDC, its venerable desktop counterpart certainly wasn't left behind. Apple announced OS X 10.9 Mavericks, the first OS X release not to carry the name of a big cat.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/11/13 17:07 UTC
We already talked about iOS 7 yesterday (after a night of sleep, it's only looking worse and worse - look at this, for Fiona's sake!), so now it's time to talk about the downright stunning and belly flutters-inducing new Mac Pro. As former owner and huge, huge, huge fan of the PowerMac G4 Cube - I haven't been this excited about an Apple product since, well, I would say the iMac G4. This is the Apple I used to love.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/10/13 23:13 UTC
Apple held its big keynote event thing at WWDC earlier this evening, but since I was away with friends I've had to read up on it later in the evening. The company announced iOS 7, OS X 10.9 Mavericks, and they gave a preview of the new Mac Pro. Especially the Mac Pro impressed me, and while iOS 7's new Holo/Metro-inspired theme looks messy and garish to me, I do commend Apple for finally breaking the mold. This news item will focus on iOS 7 - I'll dive into the Mac Pro and OS X 10.9 tomorrow (it's late here now).
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/08/13 14:57 UTC
And yes, the PRISM scandal is far, far from over. More and more information keeps leaking out, and the more gets out, the worse it gets. The companies involved have sent out official statements - often by mouth of their CEOs - and what's interesting is that not only are these official statements eerily similar to each other, using the same terms clearly designed by lawyers, they also directly contradict new reports from The New York Times. So, who is lying?
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/07/13 11:40 UTC
This story is getting bigger and bigger. Even though most Americans probably already knew, it is now official: the United States government, through its National Security Agency, is collecting the communications and data of all American citizens, and of non-Americans using American services, through a wide collaboration with the large companies in technology, like Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, and so on. Interestingly enough, the NSA itself, as well as the US government, have repeatedly and firmly denied this massive spying on Americans and non-Americans took place at all.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 06/04/13 12:45 UTC
Ah, patents - the never-ending scourge of the technology industry. Whether wielded by companies who don't actually make any products, or large corporations who abuse them because they can't compete in the market place or because they're simply jerks, they do the industry a huge disservice and are simply plain dangerous. According to The Wall Street Journal (circumvention link), president Obama is about to take several executive actions to address patent trolls - which may seem like a good idea, but I am very worried that all this will do is strengthen the positions of notorious patent system abusers such as Apple and Microsoft.
Linked by nfeske on 05/31/13 10:12 UTC
With version 13.05, the developers of the Genode OS Framework take measures to ensure that Genode continues to scale well with a growing number of users and the steadily broadening platform coverage. Further highlights are the improved SoC support for Exynos 5, OMAP4, Raspberry Pi, i.MX, and new components for realizing headless systems.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/29/13 16:59 UTC
At the D11 conference, Apple CEO Tim Cook once again took the stage to be interviewed by Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher. While most of the interview can be replicated by picking and reading 10 random Apple fanblog stories - there were still a number of very interesting things that warrant some closer scrutiny.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/24/13 17:26 UTC
So, the Xbox One disaster continues. Microsoft's policy for dealing with the used games market has reportedly leaked - and it's a clear and direct attack to destroy the used games market. Prices for used games will be set at the retail value of a new game, and retailers have to hook into Microsoft's computer systems and comply with Microsoft's terms and conditions.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/21/13 21:38 UTC
At an event earlier today, Microsoft unveiled the next Xbox - the third model, but confusingly named Xbox One. The big focus was TV, integrated Kinect, and all the other stuff we all expected to be forced down our throats. I think it took them 25 minutes to actually come to what should be the core of the story: gaming. Nothing groundbreaking in the gaming department, except for how Microsoft intends to handle the used games market and borrowing games from friends: pay up, buddy!More Features »
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Member since:
2006-11-28
I disagree. Maintaining a clear, precise focus is a Very Good Thing (see: Coupling and Cohesion 101). You never see a joiner using the same tool to do everything from slice wood to turn screws to drive nails to apply varnish. There's a reason for that.
I think the real problem is developers not being able to hop quickly and effortlessly between different languages within a project. That may be partly down to bridging and tools not being good enough to allow seamless mixing and matching. But I suspect the biggest barrier is developers themselves lacking the mental agility to switch between languages and idioms. That, compounded by a self-indulgent fondness for inventing complex solutions using tools they already know rather than seeking out simple solutions involving tools they don't. The modern trend for Computer Science courses to silently retool as Software Engineering, and from there to lowest-common-denominator Java diploma mills, probably doesn't help either; but that's another debate.