Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!decwrl!netcomsv!jls
From: jls@netcom.COM (Jim Showalter)
Newsgroups: comp.object
Subject: Re: Seeking Object Oriented Design Training
Keywords: Object Oriented Design Training
Message-ID: <1991Jun24.190417.10440@netcom.COM>
Date: 24 Jun 91 19:04:17 GMT
References: <34395@shamash.cdc.com> <13457@sybase.sybase.com>
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  UNIX System {408 241-9760 guest}
Lines: 48

>C is obsolete.  At least use C++.  Why not?

Well, for starters many organizations have a suite of tools
built up over many years that is specifically targeted to
C, and such tool commonly get tripped up by little gotchas
when they're run on C++ code (e.g. mangled names, etc). This
is not to say that such tools cannot be upgraded in a relatively
short period of time, just that it IS necessary to do so--and
some companies don't see a business case for making the extra
effort. Don't get me wrong--I'm a big advocate of using more
modern languages to do software engineering, but the facts and
figures to support my gut intuition that, say, opaque types and
formal interfaces help foster better code than do older languages
are few and far between. You can easily sell C++ to a technical
manager with the same gut intuition, but try selling it to a
less technical manager with more of a dollars and cents focus.
Have fun...

This tools issue is not just idle chitchat, by the way. Last year
I worked with a Very Large Telecommunications Company on a project
to migrate 1MSLOC of a 4MSLOC project from C to C++, and one of the
sticking points was the fact that they wouldn't even have a DEBUGGER
for the C++ code until the end of the year. Seems the demands of
their particular application domain had led them to add all kinds of
proprietary (and perfectly justifiable) features to their toolset,
many of which now fell over dead because of differences between C
and C++. In a large organization, where toolbuilding is often the
province of a service group beholden to no individual project, getting
them to change existing tools can be about as easy as getting them
to volunteer for root canals without anesthetic.

C++ is technically superior to C, no question. But is it superior
to C from a BUSINESS standpoint?--depends on a lot of other factors.

>Rational has an extensive object oriented training program.  From
>what I know about the program, it might be just what you're looking
>for.  They do take their show on the road, so you might even get
>your on-site delivery.

Rational does exceptional OO training, and has been doing it for
years (Grady Booch works at Rational). I used to work there and
do OO training on their behalf--good stuff. Call Rational Consulting,
(408) 496-3700.
-- 
*** LIMITLESS SOFTWARE, Inc: Jim Showalter, jls@netcom.com, (408) 243-0630 ****
*Proven solutions to software problems. Consulting and training on all aspects*
*of software development. Management/process/methodology. Architecture/design/*
*reuse. Quality/productivity. Risk reduction. EFFECTIVE OO usage. Ada/C++.    *