Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.milw.wisc.edu!cs.utexas.edu!longway!std-unix
From: std-unix@longway.TIC.COM (Moderator, John S. Quarterman)
Newsgroups: comp.std.unix
Subject: Re: POSIX flame...
Message-ID: <356@longway.TIC.COM>
Date: 7 Jun 89 17:31:04 GMT
References: <346@longway.TIC.COM>
Reply-To: uunet!algor2!jeffrey (Jeffrey Kegler)
Organization: Algorists, Inc., Reston VA
Lines: 37
Approved: jsq@longway.tic.com (Moderator, John S. Quarterman)

From: uunet!algor2!jeffrey (Jeffrey Kegler)

In article <346@longway.TIC.COM> uunet!aries.mitre.org!emery
(David Emery) writes:

>We in the Ada community (regardless of Unix-literacy) have a heluva
>lot more experience with formal standards documents than the Unix
>community. 

This is a bug not a feature.  The ADA community has done little so far
except work with standards. 

>Consider how most people learn Unix.  It's not by studying
>SVID, but rather by learning an implementation.

Learning programming from a standard is like learning seamanship in the
Rockies.

Do not get me wrong.  While I earn my living from UNIX/C, I have studied
ADA, like many of its features, wish some were in UNIX, and would not
object to programming in ADA someday.  That day will never come if the ADA
community thinks it can do without input from UNIX practitioners.

Representation on the committee does not necessarily make any difference,
as long as there is input.  If this POSIX standard comes out as anything
less than a joint effort with the community of UNIX practitioners, the ADA
people will have done themselves a great disservice.  And I will have
wasted my time spent studying ADA.
-- 

Jeffrey Kegler, President, Algorists,
jeffrey@algor2.UU.NET or uunet!algor2!jeffrey
1762 Wainwright DR, Reston VA 22090

[ Let's try to turn this back into a more technical discussion.  -mod ]

Volume-Number: Volume 16, Number 52