Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!samsung!uunet!mtndew!friedl From: friedl@mtndew.Tustin.CA.US (Steve Friedl) Newsgroups: comp.lang.c Subject: Re: a style question Message-ID: <537@mtndew.Tustin.CA.US> Date: 5 Oct 90 04:45:57 GMT References: <7341@darkstar.ucsc.edu> <1990Sep30.050655.13212@zoo.toronto.edu> <4762@navy8.UUCP> Organization: VSI*FAX Tech Ctr, Tustin, CA Lines: 24 In article <4762@navy8.UUCP>, kreidler@motcid.UUCP (Joe Kreidler) writes: > > As software systems keep getting larger and more complex, it is > important to develop code that is easy to understand and can be ported > to new applications. This comes at the cost of less efficient code > (when compared to assembler). This is seductive but true only superficially. Q: Given two equally-talented teams of programmers, one using C and one using assembler, which team will produce the system with best execution time for a non-trivial program? A: The team writing in C. While the assembler folks are busy optimizing that inner loop, the C people are testing three different algorithms to see which one is *really* faster. Steve -- Stephen J. Friedl, KA8CMY / I speak for me only / Tustin, CA / 3B2-kind-of-guy +1 714 544 6561 / friedl@mtndew.Tustin.CA.US / {uunet,attmail}!mtndew!friedl "There are no technical problems that marketing can't overcome" - Gary W. Keefe