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Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uwm.edu!ogicse!emory!hubcap!ncrcae!ncr-sd!sagpd1!jharkins
From: jharkins@sagpd1.UUCP (Jim Harkins)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.c,comp.software-eng
Subject: Re: C Community's Cavalier Attitude On Software Reliability
Keywords: Unprofessional Irresponsible
Message-ID: <649@sagpd1.UUCP>
Date: 26 Feb 90 17:00:08 GMT
References: <8147@hubcap.clemson.edu>
Reply-To: jharkins@sagpd1.UUCP (Jim Harkins)
Organization: Scientific Atlanta, Government Products Div, San Diego, CA
Lines: 20

So out of several thousands of commands and programs, some quite complex
(like emacs) you found a handful of bug reports and use this to condem C?
It seems to me like you are stumbling over one of the philosophical questions
of programming, to wit: If there is a known bug to you tell the customers
about it or hope they never see it?  If you tell them about the bug then they
may get cold pricklies about your software, but then again they may admire
your forthrightness, especially if you can prevent them from losing hours of
work by tripping over the bug for themselves.  If you don't tell them about
the bug (this seems to be the way 90% of companies operate) then chances are
most people won't stumble over all the bugs so they won't know how bad the
software really is.

And don't tell me that software shouldn't be shipped without bugs, this is
the real world.

-- 
jim		jharkins@sagpd1

"I've found by and large that when the flu gets you, the best thing to do (other
 than go to bed, which is boring) is to go conquer something." -Jerry Pournelle