Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!mnetor!seismo!mcvax!ukc!cheviot!lindsay From: lindsay@cheviot.newcastle.ac.uk (Lindsay F. Marshall) Newsgroups: comp.os.misc Subject: Re: Info wanted on Xerox Alto OS Message-ID: <2229@cheviot.newcastle.ac.uk> Date: Wed, 24-Jun-87 04:39:42 EDT Article-I.D.: cheviot.2229 Posted: Wed Jun 24 04:39:42 1987 Date-Received: Sat, 4-Jul-87 17:32:49 EDT References: <415@unisoft.UUCP> Reply-To: lindsay@cheviot (Lindsay F. Marshall) Organization: Computing Laboratory, U of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK NE17RU Lines: 22 In article <415@unisoft.UUCP> jef@unisoft.UUCP (Jef Poskanzer) writes: >Mesa is still in use, and is unquestionably the best >Algol-style language yet created. Sorry, but I would question it!! I think mesa is a dreadful language. > All the power and safety of Ada >and Modula-2, with none of their verbosity and syntactic stupidities. Mesa is the most verbose Algol-like language I have ever used (much worse than Ada) and it is full of the most ridiculous syntax I have ever come across. As for it's much vaunted type safety, if you look at any large programs written in it they all make massive use of the "loophole" facility to avoid the type-checking....... Lindsay -- Lindsay F. Marshall JANET: lindsay@uk.ac.newcastle.cheviot ARPA: lindsay%cheviot.newcastle@ucl-cs PHONE: +44-91-2329233 UUCP: !ukc!cheviot!lindsay "How can you be in two places at once when you're not anywhere at all?"