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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!caip!andromeda!marco
From: marco@andromeda.RUTGERS.EDU (the wharf rat)
Newsgroups: net.decus
Subject: Real Programmers Don't Use BASIC.  Or do they ?
Message-ID: <521@andromeda.RUTGERS.EDU>
Date: Thu, 7-Aug-86 20:41:45 EDT
Article-I.D.: andromed.521
Posted: Thu Aug  7 20:41:45 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 9-Aug-86 07:10:05 EDT
Organization: Franklin's Tower
Lines: 16
Keywords: DEC Professional, basic, why ?


	One of my co-workers showed me an article in the DEC Professional
(Feb. 86) about user-written print-symbionts.  In the code the author
includes as an example there is much complaining about "feeble attempts to
emulate strings in ForTran" .  The author bemoans the fact that "more
sites don't buy VAX BASIC" .  Now, the last time I was looking for a job,
I was offered several on systems programmed almost exclusively in VAX
BASIC. My question is :  Given the other excellent compilers running on
VAXen, *why* would anyone insist on BASIC ? Especially someone working
at the level of print symbionts and similair fun stuff ?  VAX ForTran
is _great_, so's the Pascal, why use BASIC, even as a teaching language ?
(The example code in the article is in ForTran, B.T.W.).  All right,
VAX BASIC is better than most, but really now....  Are there some things
it does particularly well ? Maybe I'll use it for my new shell :-) !

                                                          W.rat