[net.followup] human factors and Algol-68

andrew@orca.UUCP (Andrew Klossner) (08/17/83)

[Our system won't let me post to "net.cog-eng".]

Good Lord, why the attack on Algol-68 in the same breath as OS/360?  If
ever there was a language which forces you to *think* about your
problem domain and state a clear, unambiguous solution, this is the
one.

When I worked on an Algol-68 compiler, our experience was that most
logic errors showed up as syntax errors.  That is, by the time you had
stated the program in such a way that the compiler would accept it, you
had it right.  Try that with a systems language like C, designed to let
you do anything because "the customer is always right".

  -- Andrew Klossner   (decvax!tektronix!tekecs!andrew)  [UUCP]
                       (andrew.tektronix@rand-relay)     [ARPA]