Yeah, I hear it's the same (or simmilar) architecture and porting games will be a sinch. I 'LIKE' some of those old SNES games though, so I don't see this as a bad thing.
Ummm.....You know the game Donkey Kong? Does it have any donkeys in it? Do you think it perhaps should have been called Monkey Kong? Did it still sell crap-loads? I don't think they really care. Neither does the market.
IANAL etc. but wouldn't this be classed as reverse engineering if you didn't use any of this other company's code? Come on, I'm curious now - what language is it? Java? VB? Progress? I guess bottom line is for your company to see a lawyer.
I'd have to disagree with some of these points. Firstly I think most people would conceed that to make C++ backwards compatible (with C) some things that would have been good to do weren't done. Python feels like a language that was designed rather than evolving in a more hap-hazard fassion. I like the terse syntax and clarity of python. Perl may be terse but sometimes at the expense of clarity. You imply that anyone who likes python or dislikes certain features in Java or C++ is either a clueless newbie or not a "real programmer" whatever that is. I don't think python claims to be a solution to every problem. Python inter-operates nicely with java (via jython) and there is plenty of python docs on re-writing stuff for C++. Why do you consider python a third-rate scripting language?
MS-SQL Server 7 is based on the Microsoft Data Engine (MSDE) which is basically SQL Server 7 with the client management tools (and a few enterprise features) stripped out. Although it depends on what type of work you're doing MSDE databases perform quite well, and the MSDE engine is free to redistribute (if you own Visual Studio). I realise that part of your "MS-SQL Server costs too much" argument is based on the cost of the hardware and operating system necessary to run it, but it may well be that they already have these also. I'd use SQL Server if they've bought a license for it, and MSDE if they don't have a license, unless their needs fall squarely into the areas of strength of MySQL.
Steven Holzner also wrote The VB6 Black Book by Coriolis Press (and the Perl Black Book which was reviewd here on/. if I remember rightly). In said VB6 black book Steven says he thinks VB is the best programming language ever. I know because I bought it (sigh - more of an off-white book than a black book). Seems like he's got his fingers in a few pies. Looking over at amazon.com Steven has written the Java Black Book, The Perl Black Book, The VB6 Black Book, the XHTML Black Book, The HTML Black Book, the C++ Black book, various books on XML, ADO programming with VB, C++, MCSD books, J++ you name it. 55 books in total (some were out of print but I think you get my point). Either this man is a) an incredible polymath who never sleeps and writes like a demon b)A hack writer who just re-gurgitates the documentation for people too lazy to read it c) A pseudonym for a number of other writers
What do you all think?
Am I? or are you?
I'm going right to the top here but the dictionary defines the first world as The industrialized non-Communist countries of the world.
It defines the second world as The Communist nations of the world, especially as an economic and political bloc.
And it defines the third world as
1. Underdeveloped or developing countries, especially those not allied with Communist countries. or 2. Minority groups as a whole within a larger prevailing culture. So the dictionary would seem to take my side of the story.
SOAP and XML don't magically make applications speak to each other, like MS would like us all to believe. Very true. Sounds like the myth of meta-data that I was reading about the other day on Wiki.
I get your point but the terms "first world", "second world" and "third world" don't (or at least didn't originally) mean what you think they mean. The first world was the democracys of the west, the second world was the soviet union, and the third world was the non-aligned developing countires (this is all AFAIK - please correct me if I'm wrong, I'm sure you will anyway). So to say that the USSR was a collective of third world countires makes no sense, they WERE the second world. I don't know where they fit in now that the USSR has collapsed, just a bit of history for y'all.
ICBM? who needs intercontinental when the country you want to bomb back to the stone age shares a border with you? I guess you'd want to make sure you could hit EVERY part of pakistan.
what do you mean, how do you transfer files from one computer to another? ? You stick it in computer A, copy the file from computer A to your key, take your key from computer A to computer B, stick your key in computer B, and copy from the key to computer B. How fscking hard is that? How is this more difficult than copying a file using a floppy disk?
I wasn't trying to suggest that Delphi == VB, only saying that historically the popularity of VB has shown that high performance for simple desktop applications is not a must. Python has a RAD tool which looks quite good (it's not free, but it doesn't cost a grand either). What makes Kylix so great? Is a good ide that lets you do RAD really worth $1K.
Yes, it's great that Borland are supporting linux, and I know there are at least a FEW windows apps out there written in delphi, but why does everyone think this is so great. Languages like Python and Ruby are free, can run cross-platform and have multiple widget sets. So does Java. The only reason would be performance (and a nice IDE?), and for most GUI apps the performance of the client computer is usually quite adequate (hasn't VB proved this?). It's usually stuff like network or database connection that is the limiting factor.
I was able to download a 'beta' version of the book a couple of months ago from here . I haven't read it yet, but I have read extreme programming explained which I thought was quite good (although like most people I have no practical experience in this kind of environment, although my current employer is getting close).
C# is already "out" in a fairly stable beta. Visula studio.net isn't too far off either. I think it will be developer inertia, not a lack of product, that will slow C#'s uptake.
O.K., let's take something more recent - genetic engineering - You're the CEO of a new company who is going to engineer some bacteria to produce a hormone for you. Would you hire some-one who didn't have any experience and was cheaper (but who said they were top shit), or someone who had spent a few years of their lives in the stuffy confines of university learning a bunch of things you figured might be out of date already, things like cell structure, chemistry, biology and scientific method. Going to university isn't like reading "Learn VB in 21 Days" a few times over. You learn things that will never go out of date (like math). The application of those things may change but the core principles remain the same. It is possible for someone to learn the "generic" things that university teaches without going to university, but university is supposed to add a bit of certainty. Software engineering has been around for over 50 years. To think that you can learn nothing from the experiences of those 50 years is crazy.
The web is so full of shit. When good content like this comes along you start to realise the potential of the internet for empowering people with information, and how far from the ideal we are right now.
Here in Australia we have these type of courses Graduate Certificates/Graduate Diplomas/Masters in I.T. for non-I.T. graduates. The only pre-req was that
a) you had achieved a credit or higher in a relevant subject (some sort of programming subject would suffice) from an accredited institution
b) Be prepared to pay boat-loads of money
I did one semester worth of subjects in one of these courses before it occured to me that my engineering degree and experience were enough to get me a job, which was what I wanted. The masters degree that was offered was by course work, I'm not sure about research.
Electric Trolley
Melbourne, australia has a massive (and imho very good) network of electric trolleys, or what we call trams.
Pneumatic Post One of these was used in the place I used to work to move medical specimens around the hospital.
Reel Movers I actually have one of these, and I used it recently. These died for a very good reason, they're very difficult to cut grass with.
Automatic Watch My seiko kinetic uses a fairly simmilar principle, except (afaik) it stores the enregey as electrical energy, not mechanical energy, so you have the accuracy of crystal quartz timing without needing to change batteries.
While over in france earlier this year I ran across the minitel. I was equally amazed an amused that something like this was still around. If you can imagine surfing the internet on a vic20 that's kind of what it's like. Very few "regular" web sites which I usually visit were available from the minitel, with one notable exception. Slashdot. Even while in france I was able to get my "news for nerds" fix. My brother even took pictures of slashdot on the minitel, posted them up on the web and then submitted a story here to slashdot about it. Too bad you bastards didn't run it.
I was pleased to see that python was also being ported to.net (it's called python.NET, get it). Some researches at the university that my brother attends make regular trips over to M$ research (they've GOT to have one of these right, that's where all that innovation comes from) had proted a few other languages over to.net about this time last year (I think it was a implementation of Object Pascal, not sure). I for one think choice is a good thing, and I'm glad some less mainstream languages are getting ported.
My Dad did this because he was sick of wrangling with things under windows. Now he makes a journey down to our local Mac shop where he bought his iMac almost every other week for them to fix some problem (mostly hardware, but some wierd problems with iMovie) that has arisen. Sure, you can go and say that my dad is a clueless idiot. You'd be wrong. He just thought getting the system to work souldn't take longer than the things you intend to use the system for. That's why he bought a mac. I don't think he'll be in a hurry to buy another one.
Slashdot Mirror
I always thought (and there are quite a few sites like this one that also think it was a mis-translation of "Monkey Kong".
Yeah, I hear it's the same (or simmilar) architecture and porting games will be a sinch. I 'LIKE' some of those old SNES games though, so I don't see this as a bad thing.
Ummm.....You know the game Donkey Kong? Does it have any donkeys in it? Do you think it perhaps should have been called Monkey Kong? Did it still sell crap-loads? I don't think they really care. Neither does the market.
IANAL etc. but wouldn't this be classed as reverse engineering if you didn't use any of this other company's code? Come on, I'm curious now - what language is it? Java? VB? Progress? I guess bottom line is for your company to see a lawyer.
I'd have to disagree with some of these points. Firstly I think most people would conceed that to make C++ backwards compatible (with C) some things that would have been good to do weren't done. Python feels like a language that was designed rather than evolving in a more hap-hazard fassion. I like the terse syntax and clarity of python. Perl may be terse but sometimes at the expense of clarity. You imply that anyone who likes python or dislikes certain features in Java or C++ is either a clueless newbie or not a "real programmer" whatever that is. I don't think python claims to be a solution to every problem. Python inter-operates nicely with java (via jython) and there is plenty of python docs on re-writing stuff for C++. Why do you consider python a third-rate scripting language?
MS-SQL Server 7 is based on the Microsoft Data Engine (MSDE) which is basically SQL Server 7 with the client management tools (and a few enterprise features) stripped out. Although it depends on what type of work you're doing MSDE databases perform quite well, and the MSDE engine is free to redistribute (if you own Visual Studio). I realise that part of your "MS-SQL Server costs too much" argument is based on the cost of the hardware and operating system necessary to run it, but it may well be that they already have these also. I'd use SQL Server if they've bought a license for it, and MSDE if they don't have a license, unless their needs fall squarely into the areas of strength of MySQL.
Steven Holzner also wrote The VB6 Black Book by Coriolis Press (and the Perl Black Book which was reviewd here on /. if I remember rightly). In said VB6 black book Steven says he thinks VB is the best programming language ever. I know because I bought it (sigh - more of an off-white book than a black book). Seems like he's got his fingers in a few pies. Looking over at amazon.com Steven has written the Java Black Book, The Perl Black Book, The VB6 Black Book, the XHTML Black Book, The HTML Black Book, the C++ Black book, various books on XML, ADO programming with VB, C++, MCSD books, J++ you name it. 55 books in total (some were out of print but I think you get my point). Either this man is
a) an incredible polymath who never sleeps and writes like a demon
b)A hack writer who just re-gurgitates the documentation for people too lazy to read it
c) A pseudonym for a number of other writers
What do you all think?
I thought a C++ Compiler in XSLT sounded pretty crazy until my brother said he'd thought about writing one, "just for fun".
Am I? or are you?
I'm going right to the top here but the dictionary defines the first world as The industrialized non-Communist countries of the world.
It defines the second world as The Communist nations of the world, especially as an economic and political bloc.
And it defines the third world as 1. Underdeveloped or developing countries, especially those not allied with Communist countries. or 2. Minority groups as a whole within a larger prevailing culture.
So the dictionary would seem to take my side of the story.
SOAP and XML don't magically make applications speak to each other, like MS would like us all to believe.
Very true. Sounds like the myth of meta-data that I was reading about the other day on Wiki.
I get your point but the terms "first world", "second world" and "third world" don't (or at least didn't originally) mean what you think they mean. The first world was the democracys of the west, the second world was the soviet union, and the third world was the non-aligned developing countires (this is all AFAIK - please correct me if I'm wrong, I'm sure you will anyway). So to say that the USSR was a collective of third world countires makes no sense, they WERE the second world. I don't know where they fit in now that the USSR has collapsed, just a bit of history for y'all.
ICBM? who needs intercontinental when the country you want to bomb back to the stone age shares a border with you? I guess you'd want to make sure you could hit EVERY part of pakistan.
what do you mean, how do you transfer files from one computer to another? ? You stick it in computer A, copy the file from computer A to your key, take your key from computer A to computer B, stick your key in computer B, and copy from the key to computer B. How fscking hard is that? How is this more difficult than copying a file using a floppy disk?
I wasn't trying to suggest that Delphi == VB, only saying that historically the popularity of VB has shown that high performance for simple desktop applications is not a must. Python has a RAD tool which looks quite good (it's not free, but it doesn't cost a grand either). What makes Kylix so great? Is a good ide that lets you do RAD really worth $1K.
Yes, it's great that Borland are supporting linux, and I know there are at least a FEW windows apps out there written in delphi, but why does everyone think this is so great. Languages like Python and Ruby are free, can run cross-platform and have multiple widget sets. So does Java. The only reason would be performance (and a nice IDE?), and for most GUI apps the performance of the client computer is usually quite adequate (hasn't VB proved this?). It's usually stuff like network or database connection that is the limiting factor.
I was able to download a 'beta' version of the book a couple of months ago from here . I haven't read it yet, but I have read extreme programming explained which I thought was quite good (although like most people I have no practical experience in this kind of environment, although my current employer is getting close).
C# is already "out" in a fairly stable beta. Visula studio.net isn't too far off either. I think it will be developer inertia, not a lack of product, that will slow C#'s uptake.
O.K., let's take something more recent - genetic engineering - You're the CEO of a new company who is going to engineer some bacteria to produce a hormone for you. Would you hire some-one who didn't have any experience and was cheaper (but who said they were top shit), or someone who had spent a few years of their lives in the stuffy confines of university learning a bunch of things you figured might be out of date already, things like cell structure, chemistry, biology and scientific method. Going to university isn't like reading "Learn VB in 21 Days" a few times over. You learn things that will never go out of date (like math). The application of those things may change but the core principles remain the same. It is possible for someone to learn the "generic" things that university teaches without going to university, but university is supposed to add a bit of certainty. Software engineering has been around for over 50 years. To think that you can learn nothing from the experiences of those 50 years is crazy.
The web is so full of shit. When good content like this comes along you start to realise the potential of the internet for empowering people with information, and how far from the ideal we are right now.
It looks like a god-awful, ugly as sin version of the audi tt.
Here in Australia we have these type of courses Graduate Certificates/Graduate Diplomas/Masters in I.T. for non-I.T. graduates. The only pre-req was that
a) you had achieved a credit or higher in a relevant subject (some sort of programming subject would suffice) from an accredited institution
b) Be prepared to pay boat-loads of money
I did one semester worth of subjects in one of these courses before it occured to me that my engineering degree and experience were enough to get me a job, which was what I wanted. The masters degree that was offered was by course work, I'm not sure about research.
Electric Trolley
Melbourne, australia has a massive (and imho very good) network of electric trolleys, or what we call trams.
Pneumatic Post
One of these was used in the place I used to work to move medical specimens around the hospital.
Reel Movers
I actually have one of these, and I used it recently. These died for a very good reason, they're very difficult to cut grass with.
Automatic Watch
My seiko kinetic uses a fairly simmilar principle, except (afaik) it stores the enregey as electrical energy, not mechanical energy, so you have the accuracy of crystal quartz timing without needing to change batteries.
While over in france earlier this year I ran across the minitel. I was equally amazed an amused that something like this was still around. If you can imagine surfing the internet on a vic20 that's kind of what it's like. Very few "regular" web sites which I usually visit were available from the minitel, with one notable exception. Slashdot. Even while in france I was able to get my "news for nerds" fix. My brother even took pictures of slashdot on the minitel, posted them up on the web and then submitted a story here to slashdot about it. Too bad you bastards didn't run it.
I was pleased to see that python was also being ported to .net (it's called python.NET, get it). Some researches at the university that my brother attends make regular trips over to M$ research (they've GOT to have one of these right, that's where all that innovation comes from) had proted a few other languages over to .net about this time last year (I think it was a implementation of Object Pascal, not sure). I for one think choice is a good thing, and I'm glad some less mainstream languages are getting ported.
My Dad did this because he was sick of wrangling with things under windows. Now he makes a journey down to our local Mac shop where he bought his iMac almost every other week for them to fix some problem (mostly hardware, but some wierd problems with iMovie) that has arisen. Sure, you can go and say that my dad is a clueless idiot. You'd be wrong. He just thought getting the system to work souldn't take longer than the things you intend to use the system for. That's why he bought a mac. I don't think he'll be in a hurry to buy another one.