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- Path: classic.iinet.com.au!news
- From: ng@mitswa.com.au (John A Ng)
- Newsgroups: comp.lang.c++
- Subject: C vs Pascal
- Date: Mon, 22 Jan 1996 09:37:05 GMT
- Organization: MITS (WA)
- Message-ID: <4e0huu$rhn@classic.iinet.com.au>
- References: <8B87053.0054014A15.uuout@swcbbs.com> <8B8F52F.0054014CDF.uuout@swcbbs.com>
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-
- As always, argument about Pascal and C. For the person who wrote:
-
- > So> For the original poster, so far I have only seen one employer in Hong
- > So> Kong that specifically requires Pascal. It's one of those news
- > So> agencies. And believe it o r
- > So> not, they use VAX!!
-
- True, there are almost no jobs (until currently as Delphi is making deep
- headway into professional programming) for Pascal programmers. That is
- because of a prejudice for Pascal which employers have but shouldn't.
-
- In such as argument, we should really be objective and see why C is
- actually more popular than it should.
-
- 1. C is portable. Many people think C is portable in that it can be
- taken from one platform and compile in another. That is incorrect since
- very very few programs written in C are fully portable except the
- absurdly small. C is portable only in the sense that one learning in
- say a MSDOS environment can easily move to another (like UNIX) without
- too much difficulty. If you know Turbo Pascal, DOS/Windows is your
- only environment.
-
- 3. Pascal is for the learner and hobbist. True but professionals too.
- Standard Pascal can do almost nothing -- which is the reason why pompous
- C programmers sneer at Pascal at being too academic. Yes, but not for
- Turbo Pascal -- which is vaguely like the original. It is attractive
- for the learner because Turbo Pascal is lightning fast. Many
- professional programs are developed in Turbo Pascal!!!
-
- 2. C is more efficient. Bullshit. C/C++ with all its standards is
- absurdly inefficient in terms of development time. C headers compiles
- and compiles again for no apparent reason. You must employ tricks to
- prevent the recompile. There are so many inefficiencies that I just
- don't want to comment. Turbo Pascal, on the other hand, is the most
- efficient compiler on earth. It makes any C compiler cry!!! -- A
- staggering 20 to 1 ratio!!! This is because there are no standards for
- Turbo Pascal and Borland is free to optimize the languge and features as
- it sees fit.
-
- 4. C has a wide user base support. I cannot deny it. Everybody talks
- C!!!
-
- 5. C and Pascal are similar. True, Turbo Pascal could properly be
- called a dialect of C. However, the latest reincarnation of Turbo
- Pascal (called Delphi) includes many Smalltalk concepts.
-
- 6. C is always way ahead (better designed) than Pascal. Incorrect.
- C++ has incorporated things from Pascal like variable parameters (ie
- passing by reference). C++ also lacks proper string facility.
-
-
- (PS: I am a profession C++ programmer who started with Turbo Pascal).
- Regards,
-
- John Ng
- ng@mitswa.com.au
- Western Australia
-
-