Thanks for the info (and the encouragement). As per tradition, I compiled "Hello World" in both C and C++ using just CL.EXE and the commandline-based distro of VC7 in.NET 1.1 SDK. Aside from the paths not being correctly setup (I think it was my bad), the code compiled clean and fast.
So the moral of the story is, if you can't afford the full IDE package or you just don't want it, you can still use the commandline tools. I think my next step is to grab TextPad and make it look like Borland.
Yet another glossy response that doesn't address the underlying problem. Being able to navigate 3D spaces for your files is neat. Maybe we'll finally get those cool file management interfaces that those kids in Hackers got. I want a Gibson too, damn it!
But it's really useless since it won't actually help users to find their files. It takes the problems posed by the desktop metaphor and compounds them. Now my report is lurking somewhere behind me beneath a virtual photo album of my vacation photos or trapped behind a virtual CD rack representing my WMA collection. 3D views of documents add on a spatial property to the data, so I'm left wondering if all documents adjacent to my notebook are related to the contents of my notebook. Now users have to think about boundaries. Anyone whose built a collection of books over the years knows that the moore different types of books you have, the harder it is to create general categories for organizing those books since content often crosses categories.
I think David Gelernter's Lifestreams will do a much better job of making document retrieval and overall information management both efficient and easy. In Lifesteams the accumulation of data, any data, forms a time-ordered stream that can be manipulated and transversed using metafilters, which are basically filters that operate on the main stream. For example, with e-mail, there is a single e-mail stream. I can create a metaphor to pull addresses from the stream, thus created an on-the-fly addressbook that is always current. I can create another metastream to pull all emails after a certain date, thus creating a virtual inbox.
When it comes to papers and reports, I don't have to think about the original filename or location of a document I wrote years ago that I want to include in a document I am writing today. I merely create a metastream to pull the data I want from all documents based on certain content. This always documents to be stored virtually across many different categories at the same time. As of right now, I'm stuck with folders and generic descriptions that become irrelevent as I stored more complex writings.
If it turns out that it sucks, feel free to come back and flame me!
Oh you can count on it!
So from what you're saying, VC.NET is still a good upgrade path for those of us who won't be doing.NET programming or strictly MFC? That's nice to hear. I can't find any marketing info that doesn't only boost the.NET features.
I haven't used DirectX/Show, but I have read about them and they seem to use straight C and COM APIs.
It was during a Google search that I read somewhere that a guy had problems getting the DirectX headers working with either BloodShed or one of the other free compilers. He had said that somewhere within the headers are variables called BOOL... which, being that BOOL is a type, causes problems for every other compiler except VC++ 6.0, which strangely gets around it. I do not know if this is true or not give how zany Microsoft is prone to be with force-crashing competing software, who knows?
.NET's C# is more or less a dead ringer for Java. If you know Java, you can pick up C# in a few hours
Maybe what it'll take for me is the actual IDE. At this time I only have a few C# and.NET books on loan and the SDK+compiler set I mentioned earlier. Having spent a few moments examining sample code, C# and VB# look a lot like Java, so I admit it was refreshing, and I am very tempted to drop C and Java altogether in favor of C#. The following articles made some good points:
At the moment though I'm still struggling to find a good free alternative to VC++ 6.0 that meets my needs. I had hoped the.NET 1.1 SDK would contain all I would need to write Windows apps using C/C++, but I don't even know how to go about writing a regular C/C++ app using the tools. Where's the C++ compiler???
GCC and the others may not be an option for me. I want to write Windows and DOS/console apps in straight API. My SO does need to program and wants to be able to write DirectX/DirectShow apps, also using just the API. Everything I have read has indicated that in order to write DirectX/DirectShow apps, I will need to buy VC++, and it looks like I need to buy v6.0 and not this new.NET stuff being sold in stores. From what I've read, the other compiler suites don't come with the SDKs I will need. I know I can download the DirectX 9.0 and the DirectMedia 6.0 SDK, but I don't know how to link them into a new compiler, and supposedly, some of the language in the SDKs are poorly formatted with syntax errors that will kill other compilers.
Of course, if any of you guys out there know otherwise, I'd love to hear about. My dream is to be able to get the Borland TurboVision IDE from Turbo C++ DOS to run on top of GCC and compiling Windows and DirectShow apps.:)
This is likely more off than on -topic, but I'm going through this now. Last night I decided to download that new Microsoft.NET 1.1 SDK, which is available as a free download. It doesn't come with the IDE interface, but my guess is that aside from this and other documentation and value-added software, there's little difference between this offering and the standard VC++.NET and VB.NET boxed sets.
I'm not new to C or the WinAPI, but MFC is completely alien to me and this.NET/C# stuff is as well. If I were a starving professional programmer, I might already know this stuff, but as I'm just a hobbyist, I'm completely in the dark on how to write and compile code with this set... which makes the free compiler and SDK or little consequence to me.
But, yes there is still GCC. I bet if I were to try my hand at UNIX programming, I'd be able to get up and running faster. With.NET and C#, I'd have to invest in a lot of $50-70 books on the subject, and this is before I've actually decided that I like programming in this language.
I have used Visual C++ 4 and 6, and VC++ is a nice product, but is there a future in this IDE? Won't the move towards.NET force Windows developers to incur some pretty hefty costs? Is VC++ 6.0 and WinAPI programming as I know it, near dead? I ask because I'd like to know. I've read that Microsoft is telling us they'll depreciate PE code, making the coding skills I've been trying to acquire for years a complete waste - providing I stick to the expected upgrade path.
I guess what I am asking is, will the move to.NET be as major a shift as was the move from 16-bit to 32-bit? Will people be left behind for having not learned.NET, or will they suddenly migrate to Linux, UNIX, and MacOS, where seems apparent that traditional C and C++ skills are still appreciated? When we evaluate the cost of developing for Windows, I think we ought to include the hidden cost of learning a new language than is really isolated to the single platform, and that might only be a fad. We may only be able to go as far as estimating opportunity cost, but it would at least give us something.
It used to be that if you wanted the latest greatest freeware and shareware for Windows and DOS, you'd hit the public FTP archives of places like my personal favorite, wuarchive.wustl.edu or you'd telnet or dialup your favorite BBS.
Or even better, you'd take three floppies and knock on the door of some hip techie to get the latest Apogee computer game (remember, Commander Keen?).
And when you couldn't do that, you'd flirt with some geek in the lab so that he'd teach you how to use rz or kermit to download freeware on your own. Ah, those were the days. I think I'll go fire up Telix.
Today, if you can't Google it, you can always try Simtel, a great place to find classic freeware as well.
Googling for Windows freeware and shareware is a hobby of mine because I still believe in supporting indepedent software developers.
But that being said, the number of quality freeware and shareware for Windows has been shrinking since the Windows 3.1 days. It's especially sad that many of the great applications that were written for DOS and that survived Windows 95, have now evolved into bloated and expensive apps that are too big for their arthopodic exoskeletons.
What comes to mind immediately is ACDSee, once an incredibly light and fast graphics viewer. Under Windows 3.11 I used to have several instances open at once - which I prefer over thumbnail viewing. Today, ACDSee is an entire graphics suite that includes some graphic editing features. I really loved ACDSee, and everyone in my dorm passed it around on diskette, but the latest incarnation is a big download and a big pain.
The Web is full of apps like ACDSee. I think what has happened is that the evolution of Windows solved the need for a lot of those older staples of Window freeware/shareware such as the image viewer. Now Windows XP has it built-in and includes a thumbnail based view of pictures.
Independent developers will either exit the market entirely, or develop their software into more advanced "suites" that offer greater value to the customer... and of course this means a higher price in line with developmental costs.
If you're a programming hobbyist whose happened to have written some real gems, you may or may not stick it out. Thankfully there are some AnalogX's out there.
Since you said you use Mozilla and FireFox, I have to ask what do you think about the two comparatively? What do you get from Mozilla that you can't get from FireFox. Alternatively, what would someone get from Netscape that they couldn't get from Mozilla?
I use FireFox, and have used it since it was Phoenix and FireBird, and I love it. It's a slick little corvette compared to Netscape and Mozilla IMO.
Are you aware that MS did make a version of IE for Solaris? It was astonishingly bad, but it did exist.
Hey, I remember that one. I remember actually wondering why I was using MSIE on Solaris, then promptly going back to Netscape. It was the principle of the matter.
Yep. I should reiterate that I can speak for the quality or problems of the Indian Institute of Technology.?
In a world where digital mistakes aren't permanent, that would read: I should reiterate that I can't speak for the quality or problems of the Indian Institute of Technology.
I'd heard of IIT of Illinois, but only because I lived in Illinois for a few years long ago. I didn't know it had anything going on in India.
Yep. I should reiterate that I can speak for the quality or problems of the Indian Institute of Technology.?
One wonders if IIT (Illinois) even knows about IIT (India). To continue my earlier rant, IIT in Chicago has done a disasterous job at managing its brand. There's a tech-trade school called ITT that rode off of IIT's name for awhile by using a deceptively similar logo and typeface. Rather than protect the brand image, IIT chose to change its own logo to something new and hip, and reminiscent of... you guessed it, a tech trade school. A couple of years ago IIT even made the decision to start offering certificate courses in things like Java and MSCE. IIT started advertising these services in IT trade magazines along-side... you guessed it, tech trade schools like Westwood, ITT, and DeVry. Grrrrrr!
The last GREAT American car produced was the Packard
I though that was the Shelby Cobra? I never heard of a Packard, but then I know very little about cars.
I refurbish them and give them new life, PC's get Linux installed on them
I can dig that. I've been "junking" before and have turned up some cool stuff. How do you feel about Linux? After all, it's the epitome of foreign-made when you consider the contributions made to a typical distro, isn't it? Looking bad, I'm temped to say that DOS is that last American-made operating system. I have to plead ignorance on Windows and BeOS.
MozillaQuest Magazine: C++ appears to be one of the properties that SCO acquired through Novell's acquisition of AT&T's UNIX Systems Laboratories and subsequent purchase of Novell's UNIX interests by SCO. At this time most Linux and/or GNU/Linux distributions include C++ compilers and editors. Is this something for which SCO currently charges? If so, just what are the current arrangements? If not, will C++ licensing and enforcement be added to SCO's licensing and enforcement program?
Blake Stowell: C++ is one of the properties that SCO owns today and we frequently are approached by customers who wish to license C++ from us and we do charge for that. Those arrangements are done on a case-by-case basis with each customer and are not disclosed publicly. C++ licensing is currently part of SCO's SCOsource licensing program.
MozillaQuest Magazine: How about GNU C++? Does GNU C++ use SCO IP? If so, could SCO license and/or charge for use of its IP in GNU C++?
Blake Stowell: I honestly don't know.
According to the article, Blake Stowell works for SCO, but I don't know who he is. He goes on say that SCO would have to research any violations on the part of the GCC team.
I know that the C++ language is developed by ANSI and ISO, but the language was developed by Bjorn Straussop (sp) as work property owned by AT&T. Am I correct?
SCO claims it acquired C++ from AT&T or Novell. Despite being a programming language, C++ itself is still a technology no different from a hammer.I can't just create a language and call it C++. If I did, ISO couldn't sue me, but SCO would have us believe SCO could. So if I create my own language and call it Borland C++, I would be liable to both SCO and Borland (who is also liable to SCO).
I know it's always in good form to bash Microsoft. Can we honestly believe that Microsoft is somehow behind this, or that Microsoft is still the evil empire? It looks like we have a new contender. I think it's about time we see more cartoons lampooning SCO like we saw for Microsoft. Where's the pic of McBride as a Borg?
Re:Expensive Electronics Cheap Scams, not taken do
on
eBay Fraud Vigilantes
·
· Score: 1
Just for giggles I thought I'd check out user feedback on some of the sellers listed. Interesting reading. For example:
A common thread seems to be an overabundance of reviews by individuals listed as sellers. The remarks are very glowing, and the syntax is often the same or very similar. There are a lot of "A+++++++++" comments.
Another common thread seems to be an overabundance of redundant comments by buyers. Often the remark is exactly the same, and the timestamps are minutes apart or shown as the same.
I think the reason why eBay didn't do anything right away was that it can be hard to notice if you're not particularly skeptical. I mean, I not only reviewed the feedback on the sellers listed in the parent post, but I also reviewed the feedback made on the reviewers themselves. The pattern becomes noticeable then.
Also, these sellers had a lot of feedback, in the thousand+ range. I don't eBay much, so perhaps this means nothing, but mathematically, the negative feedback being given tends to get overshadowed by the hundreds upon hundreds of positive feedback; thus masking the con.
You know what, Amoeba pointed out that you are talking about a different IIT, and not the IIT satellite campus in India - which I believe may also be in Madras. So if so, sorry about that. Everything I said specific to IIT was about the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, which is informally called the "Indian Institute of Technology" - my bad.
Couldn't have said it better myself. Some foreigners, most notably Thai students, are very very shy people. I took a friend of mine to a Starbucks and bought her a coffee. She showed it to her girlfriends and they were amazed. Obviously they aren't savages. In their own language, they may very well be poets. The girl was excited because she always wanted to go a Starbucks and order one of the fancier Frappacinos, but she didn't know how and felt overwhelmed by the experience. I undoubtedly would feel the same if ordering a Mango Breeze in Bangkok.
However, Asians are especially ethnocentrist. Remember, it was China and Japan that closed their gates and ports to all foreigners in order to prevent dilution of their own individual cultures.
Some Asian students are naturally more open than others. The Chinese can be very open and very social. The Indians too, much more so than other central Asian groups. The Japanese and the Koreans seem to have to overcome more in order to feel accepted here, which is sad. A lot of the Zimbabwe students I met are very social, as are the Turks and Indonesians. I think the Taiwanese though are the among the worst offenders next to the Arabs and Pakistanis. I can honest count on my hands the number of Taiwanese students I've met and dealt with that didn't have a monolithic chip on their shoulders.
The Europeans, especially the Turks, Czechs, Germans, Italians, and Spanish are the best. The Croats can be very social, and to a lesser extent the Russians. Unfortunately, that natural desire to explore other cultures is partly responsible for those colonial ambitions of long ago:)
Or, as it is known in academic circles: Indian Institute of Technology.
IIT has a satellite campus in India. Could be that he is talking about a different IIT in India, in which case - OOPS:) I'll have to post a clarification if it isn't obvious.
I have more class than to drive a "beamer" no matter where they are made.
You kill me, but since I agree with you on the subject of German automotive engineering, I won't call you on what you consider class.
I have a better idea. How about we arrest and EXECUTE in PUBLIC those fat cats at the top of the food chain that sell out America and sell out American jobs?
Was it film-maker Michael Moore who suggested a television show like Cops for parading around corporate criminals? I think it was. I'd certainly go that far, but executing them in public? Well, maybe, but you'd have to include Congress and the White House, and you wouldn't want to go there.
Why? What's wrong with supporting the country that you live in? Is that suddenly "wrong"???
No. I think you go the gist of what I was meaning after your original remark, but just in case: in the digital age with supply-chains that circle the globe, this concept of "Buy American" is outdated and silly. Many of the companies that use the phrase "American made" are flat-out lying. There is no standard behind the logo. A company based in Detroit that adds a final bit of value to an otherwise finished product 99% assembled overseas can still call the completed product "American made"
I don't buy from American companies that that employ foreign labor. I don't buy from foreign owned companies.
You mentioned that you don't buy American cars because they are crap. I agree, but you're backing down from your position. Why buy German anything, old or new? I think your point is that you will choose quality over nationalism first and foremost, but would prefer a 100% American made alternative if the quality was equal. Am I correct? If so, how do you know that an American company does employ foreign labor? For simple consumer goods this is easy, but for complex consumer goods like electronics, this has got to be very time-consuming for you, unless you buy no electronics.
Why do you think Indian Institute of Technology [iitm.ac.in] needs to have Americans attend?
I don't think IIT's campus in India needs American students, but it was obvious I wasn't talking about IIT Madras.
The fact that IIT maintains an additional Indian campus illustrates the problem. IIT is extremely invested in Indian students because it consistently fails to bring in Americans. Even local Chicagoans are preferring Loyola and U. Chicago over IIT. In recent years, IIT has been trying to diversify. The school is now interested in reaching out to Latin America.
IIT has been doing less marketing across the country than it to. It used to be the case that the majority of American campus-based students at IIT (in Chicago) were ROTC cadets. The finances of supporting and educating IIT cadets didn't work to IIT's advantage, so ROTCs became a market of diminishing returns for the university.
What IIT students have is a university that is on its last leg. It must export its product to other countries and import students to fill classrooms. From a business perspective, IIT has liked doing this because the foreign students often pay up front, whereas with Americans they have to deal with the financial aid - which can process late. However, in the long run, this hurts the school.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute just had it's largest freshman class to date, most of them engineering majors.
That's pretty cool! It's understandable that a lot of freshmen drop their majors in favor of easier degree programs. That's always going to happen. As far as the Polytechnics go, I'd say RPI students have it a lot harder than IIT students.
RPI certainly has better food, but that's another story all together.
I you can't buy American, do without.
I do. I only deal with American made products, in what I buy and in what I sell..
That's cute. Did you know that the US Army contracts to India as well? Did you know that many of the Bush-Cheney campaign's official sweatshirts were made in Burma? Do you drive an American made car? If so, what country was the engine assembled in? There are a couple of BMW models built here in the US by Americans. Would you buy one?
I'm not meaning to be crass with you... this time. I can feel your pain. If you really want to help the situation though, this "Buy American" crap idea has got to go.
Buying exclusively from an American company that has a predominantly foreign workforce doesn't help things. Refusing to buy from a foreign company that has a strong American workforce only makes things worse.
Here's an idea. We could publicly shame those companies that dump jobs overseas when there is a glut of qualified workers domestically. We could start a movement. Say we get a petition with the names of every out-of-work American who can't find a job due to outsourcing, or who has lost a job to foreign outsourcing. We then create our own virtual Wall. We then make a banner that reads, "I lost my job so that executives can get paid more." or something to the effect. Since top-level executive pay has been increasing dramatically, we'd have a powerful statement. We could go one step further and make a list of companies that outsource and publicize that.
I for one have already taken my Protectionist vow:)
Bad decision.Life in USA is materialistically awesome.
Family wise , i dont wanna explain.
I really mean it , u guys should see some laid back countries and relatiosnships of people there.
Flamebait...
Family-wise? What, you don't think Americans have equally awesome relationships?
I can be pretty radical left-wing, but for every critique of American culture, even I can think of twenty or so countries that could learn something from us. Moving on though. How long have you been in the US? We're a pretty edgy nation on the whole today, but then we've had a lot on our minds recently.
The biggest reason that Indians are such good programmers (and engineers) is because, at the current time, only the best and brightest in India
Indians are no better at programming than any other ethnicity. In my experience I've seen more evidence to support the argument that Indians aren't very good programmers at all, but that they are excellent at following instructions. In other words, they can't program or think out of the box.
Obviously though, any such argument is severely flawed.
I'd say the specific reason why most Indian and Chinese students studying in the US are in the sciences comes from the fact that sciences, engineering, and computer science are more practical. Math is math. C++ is C++. You don't have to master English or develop a deep understanding of American culture in order to get an 'A' in any of your core classes then get a good job. I have only met a couple of Indians from India who majored in the social sciences or humanity while here. For their perspective, they understood that they wouldn't make much money, and that they were competing with at a severe disadvantage due to the cultural and linguistic differences.
That doesn't mean India's premiere school, IIT, is bad. In fact is it an excellent school, despite the limitations of resources they still have to work with.
I attended IIT. It was an excellent school then, but years later, that dump is hemoraging cash and students. It may not make it into the next decade. One thing IIT definitely doesn't have going for it is American students. There are fewer and fewer American freshmen attending that university each year; but while this is partially due to the school's poor branding effort and bad image, it's also due to the fact that there's less motivation among young Americans to enter the applied sciences and engineering fields.
I myself am not a professional programmer. I just calculate statistics and make generalizations about economics and sociology, but I can program in BASIC, C, and Java. I can even write simple Windows app without using a framework like MFC. There's a glut of tech-savvy Americans like me in the workforce. Many high-schools are realizing that in this day and age, computer expertise will not boost your resume or guarantee you the job. It's a prerequisite just for getting the interview.
Several decades ago Karl Polanyi, IMNSHO the world's astute economic historian and philosopher, discussed pretty clearly how we were building up to a rehash of the world economic crisis of the 1930s.
To put simply, the world is split into the developed industrial and post-industrial nations, and the developing nations. The developed nations (USA, UK, Germany) are typically rich in knowledge assets, whereas the developing nations (India, Mexico, and to an extent, China) are rich in natural resources.We in the US and Western Europe have the creativity and the skills, but tend to be in short supply of labor resources and materials. The reciprocal is true in the developing nations. This permits us to exert bargaining power over these nations, resulting in cheap materials and cheap labor.
Through Western education, developing nations are beginning to develop the creativity and the talent, with which to complement their ownership of the resources. However, we in the post-industrial West (and Japan and Taiwan) are not as able to gain the resources.
This is where things get scary. India has been a good place to pump out cheap code - even if the code isn't innovative or even original. The Chinese are good at assembling parts, despite not being talented at designing them. That's changing. With this growing independence in creativity and talent, combined ownership of the factors of production, developing nations are shifting the balance of power in their favor, and most likely will be able to exert greater economic (and thus political) power over the current post-industrial nations.
In my opinion, American and Japanese ingenuity will continue to save our two economies; however we'll lose much of the bargaining power we already have once it becomes desirable for an Indian firm to outsource some of its processes to cheap American labor. We can definitely expect the price of materials to increase for Western businesses as a result of the balance of power.
In case anyone's interested...
The Great Transformation - The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time, by Karl Polanyi
ISBN: 0-8070-5643-X
Slashdot Mirror
Thanks for the info (and the encouragement). As per tradition, I compiled "Hello World" in both C and C++ using just CL.EXE and the commandline-based distro of VC7 in .NET 1.1 SDK. Aside from the paths not being correctly setup (I think it was my bad), the code compiled clean and fast.
So the moral of the story is, if you can't afford the full IDE package or you just don't want it, you can still use the commandline tools. I think my next step is to grab TextPad and make it look like Borland.
Yet another glossy response that doesn't address the underlying problem. Being able to navigate 3D spaces for your files is neat. Maybe we'll finally get those cool file management interfaces that those kids in Hackers got. I want a Gibson too, damn it!
But it's really useless since it won't actually help users to find their files. It takes the problems posed by the desktop metaphor and compounds them. Now my report is lurking somewhere behind me beneath a virtual photo album of my vacation photos or trapped behind a virtual CD rack representing my WMA collection. 3D views of documents add on a spatial property to the data, so I'm left wondering if all documents adjacent to my notebook are related to the contents of my notebook. Now users have to think about boundaries. Anyone whose built a collection of books over the years knows that the moore different types of books you have, the harder it is to create general categories for organizing those books since content often crosses categories.
I think David Gelernter's Lifestreams will do a much better job of making document retrieval and overall information management both efficient and easy. In Lifesteams the accumulation of data, any data, forms a time-ordered stream that can be manipulated and transversed using metafilters, which are basically filters that operate on the main stream. For example, with e-mail, there is a single e-mail stream. I can create a metaphor to pull addresses from the stream, thus created an on-the-fly addressbook that is always current. I can create another metastream to pull all emails after a certain date, thus creating a virtual inbox.
When it comes to papers and reports, I don't have to think about the original filename or location of a document I wrote years ago that I want to include in a document I am writing today. I merely create a metastream to pull the data I want from all documents based on certain content. This always documents to be stored virtually across many different categories at the same time. As of right now, I'm stuck with folders and generic descriptions that become irrelevent as I stored more complex writings.
Lifestreams Homepage
Lifestreams Discussion at ACM
Wired Magazine article on Lifestreams and Gelernter
If it turns out that it sucks, feel free to come back and flame me! Oh you can count on it!
.NET programming or strictly MFC? That's nice to hear. I can't find any marketing info that doesn't only boost the .NET features.
So from what you're saying, VC.NET is still a good upgrade path for those of us who won't be doing
I haven't used DirectX/Show, but I have read about them and they seem to use straight C and COM APIs. It was during a Google search that I read somewhere that a guy had problems getting the DirectX headers working with either BloodShed or one of the other free compilers. He had said that somewhere within the headers are variables called BOOL... which, being that BOOL is a type, causes problems for every other compiler except VC++ 6.0, which strangely gets around it. I do not know if this is true or not give how zany Microsoft is prone to be with force-crashing competing software, who knows?
.NET's C# is more or less a dead ringer for Java. If you know Java, you can pick up C# in a few hours
.NET books on loan and the SDK+compiler set I mentioned earlier. Having spent a few moments examining sample code, C# and VB# look a lot like Java, so I admit it was refreshing, and I am very tempted to drop C and Java altogether in favor of C#. The following articles made some good points:
.NET 1.1 SDK would contain all I would need to write Windows apps using C/C++, but I don't even know how to go about writing a regular C/C++ app using the tools. Where's the C++ compiler???
.NET stuff being sold in stores. From what I've read, the other compiler suites don't come with the SDKs I will need. I know I can download the DirectX 9.0 and the DirectMedia 6.0 SDK, but I don't know how to link them into a new compiler, and supposedly, some of the language in the SDKs are poorly formatted with syntax errors that will kill other compilers.
:)
Maybe what it'll take for me is the actual IDE. At this time I only have a few C# and
A Comparison of Microsoft's C# Programming Language to Sun Microsystems' Java Programming Language By Dare Obasanjo
and
A Comparative Overview of C#
At the moment though I'm still struggling to find a good free alternative to VC++ 6.0 that meets my needs. I had hoped the
GCC and the others may not be an option for me. I want to write Windows and DOS/console apps in straight API. My SO does need to program and wants to be able to write DirectX/DirectShow apps, also using just the API. Everything I have read has indicated that in order to write DirectX/DirectShow apps, I will need to buy VC++, and it looks like I need to buy v6.0 and not this new
Of course, if any of you guys out there know otherwise, I'd love to hear about. My dream is to be able to get the Borland TurboVision IDE from Turbo C++ DOS to run on top of GCC and compiling Windows and DirectShow apps.
This is likely more off than on -topic, but I'm going through this now. Last night I decided to download that new Microsoft .NET 1.1 SDK, which is available as a free download. It doesn't come with the IDE interface, but my guess is that aside from this and other documentation and value-added software, there's little difference between this offering and the standard VC++ .NET and VB .NET boxed sets.
.NET/C# stuff is as well. If I were a starving professional programmer, I might already know this stuff, but as I'm just a hobbyist, I'm completely in the dark on how to write and compile code with this set... which makes the free compiler and SDK or little consequence to me.
.NET and C#, I'd have to invest in a lot of $50-70 books on the subject, and this is before I've actually decided that I like programming in this language.
.NET force Windows developers to incur some pretty hefty costs? Is VC++ 6.0 and WinAPI programming as I know it, near dead? I ask because I'd like to know. I've read that Microsoft is telling us they'll depreciate PE code, making the coding skills I've been trying to acquire for years a complete waste - providing I stick to the expected upgrade path.
.NET be as major a shift as was the move from 16-bit to 32-bit? Will people be left behind for having not learned .NET, or will they suddenly migrate to Linux, UNIX, and MacOS, where seems apparent that traditional C and C++ skills are still appreciated? When we evaluate the cost of developing for Windows, I think we ought to include the hidden cost of learning a new language than is really isolated to the single platform, and that might only be a fad. We may only be able to go as far as estimating opportunity cost, but it would at least give us something.
I'm not new to C or the WinAPI, but MFC is completely alien to me and this
But, yes there is still GCC. I bet if I were to try my hand at UNIX programming, I'd be able to get up and running faster. With
I have used Visual C++ 4 and 6, and VC++ is a nice product, but is there a future in this IDE? Won't the move towards
I guess what I am asking is, will the move to
It used to be that if you wanted the latest greatest freeware and shareware for Windows and DOS, you'd hit the public FTP archives of places like my personal favorite, wuarchive.wustl.edu or you'd telnet or dialup your favorite BBS.
Or even better, you'd take three floppies and knock on the door of some hip techie to get the latest Apogee computer game (remember, Commander Keen?).
And when you couldn't do that, you'd flirt with some geek in the lab so that he'd teach you how to use rz or kermit to download freeware on your own. Ah, those were the days. I think I'll go fire up Telix.
Today, if you can't Google it, you can always try Simtel, a great place to find classic freeware as well.
Googling for Windows freeware and shareware is a hobby of mine because I still believe in supporting indepedent software developers.
But that being said, the number of quality freeware and shareware for Windows has been shrinking since the Windows 3.1 days. It's especially sad that many of the great applications that were written for DOS and that survived Windows 95, have now evolved into bloated and expensive apps that are too big for their arthopodic exoskeletons.
What comes to mind immediately is ACDSee, once an incredibly light and fast graphics viewer. Under Windows 3.11 I used to have several instances open at once - which I prefer over thumbnail viewing. Today, ACDSee is an entire graphics suite that includes some graphic editing features. I really loved ACDSee, and everyone in my dorm passed it around on diskette, but the latest incarnation is a big download and a big pain.
The Web is full of apps like ACDSee. I think what has happened is that the evolution of Windows solved the need for a lot of those older staples of Window freeware/shareware such as the image viewer. Now Windows XP has it built-in and includes a thumbnail based view of pictures.
Independent developers will either exit the market entirely, or develop their software into more advanced "suites" that offer greater value to the customer... and of course this means a higher price in line with developmental costs.
If you're a programming hobbyist whose happened to have written some real gems, you may or may not stick it out. Thankfully there are some AnalogX's out there.
Since you said you use Mozilla and FireFox, I have to ask what do you think about the two comparatively? What do you get from Mozilla that you can't get from FireFox. Alternatively, what would someone get from Netscape that they couldn't get from Mozilla?
I use FireFox, and have used it since it was Phoenix and FireBird, and I love it. It's a slick little corvette compared to Netscape and Mozilla IMO.
Are you aware that MS did make a version of IE for Solaris? It was astonishingly bad, but it did exist.
Hey, I remember that one. I remember actually wondering why I was using MSIE on Solaris, then promptly going back to Netscape. It was the principle of the matter.
Oh you bastard! I've got a live cut of that one that's been playing in heavy rotation at my place for about a month!
Yep. I should reiterate that I can speak for the quality or problems of the Indian Institute of Technology.?
In a world where digital mistakes aren't permanent, that would read: I should reiterate that I can't speak for the quality or problems of the Indian Institute of Technology.
MIT has got a nickname too: Made in Taiwan
I'd heard of IIT of Illinois, but only because I lived in Illinois for a few years long ago. I didn't know it had anything going on in India.
Yep. I should reiterate that I can speak for the quality or problems of the Indian Institute of Technology.?
One wonders if IIT (Illinois) even knows about IIT (India). To continue my earlier rant, IIT in Chicago has done a disasterous job at managing its brand. There's a tech-trade school called ITT that rode off of IIT's name for awhile by using a deceptively similar logo and typeface. Rather than protect the brand image, IIT chose to change its own logo to something new and hip, and reminiscent of... you guessed it, a tech trade school. A couple of years ago IIT even made the decision to start offering certificate courses in things like Java and MSCE. IIT started advertising these services in IT trade magazines along-side... you guessed it, tech trade schools like Westwood, ITT, and DeVry. Grrrrrr!
The last GREAT American car produced was the Packard
I though that was the Shelby Cobra? I never heard of a Packard, but then I know very little about cars.
I refurbish them and give them new life, PC's get Linux installed on them I can dig that. I've been "junking" before and have turned up some cool stuff. How do you feel about Linux? After all, it's the epitome of foreign-made when you consider the contributions made to a typical distro, isn't it? Looking bad, I'm temped to say that DOS is that last American-made operating system. I have to plead ignorance on Windows and BeOS.
SCO thinks it owns the C++ programming language according to one article:
S tory03.html#C++_Issues
http://www.mozillaquest.com/Linux03/ScoSource-02_
Excerpt:
MozillaQuest Magazine: C++ appears to be one of the properties that SCO acquired through Novell's acquisition of AT&T's UNIX Systems Laboratories and subsequent purchase of Novell's UNIX interests by SCO. At this time most Linux and/or GNU/Linux distributions include C++ compilers and editors. Is this something for which SCO currently charges? If so, just what are the current arrangements? If not, will C++ licensing and enforcement be added to SCO's licensing and enforcement program?
Blake Stowell: C++ is one of the properties that SCO owns today and we frequently are approached by customers who wish to license C++ from us and we do charge for that. Those arrangements are done on a case-by-case basis with each customer and are not disclosed publicly. C++ licensing is currently part of SCO's SCOsource licensing program.
MozillaQuest Magazine: How about GNU C++? Does GNU C++ use SCO IP? If so, could SCO license and/or charge for use of its IP in GNU C++?
Blake Stowell: I honestly don't know.
According to the article, Blake Stowell works for SCO, but I don't know who he is. He goes on say that SCO would have to research any violations on the part of the GCC team.
I know that the C++ language is developed by ANSI and ISO, but the language was developed by Bjorn Straussop (sp) as work property owned by AT&T. Am I correct?
SCO claims it acquired C++ from AT&T or Novell. Despite being a programming language, C++ itself is still a technology no different from a hammer.I can't just create a language and call it C++. If I did, ISO couldn't sue me, but SCO would have us believe SCO could. So if I create my own language and call it Borland C++, I would be liable to both SCO and Borland (who is also liable to SCO).
I know it's always in good form to bash Microsoft. Can we honestly believe that Microsoft is somehow behind this, or that Microsoft is still the evil empire? It looks like we have a new contender. I think it's about time we see more cartoons lampooning SCO like we saw for Microsoft. Where's the pic of McBride as a Borg?
Just for giggles I thought I'd check out user feedback on some of the sellers listed. Interesting reading. For example:
d back&userid=revbuys
d back&userid=qualityserviceaa
d back&userid=rl0725
http://cgi2.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewFee
http://cgi2.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewFee
http://cgi2.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewFee
A common thread seems to be an overabundance of reviews by individuals listed as sellers. The remarks are very glowing, and the syntax is often the same or very similar. There are a lot of "A+++++++++" comments.
Another common thread seems to be an overabundance of redundant comments by buyers. Often the remark is exactly the same, and the timestamps are minutes apart or shown as the same.
I think the reason why eBay didn't do anything right away was that it can be hard to notice if you're not particularly skeptical. I mean, I not only reviewed the feedback on the sellers listed in the parent post, but I also reviewed the feedback made on the reviewers themselves. The pattern becomes noticeable then.
Also, these sellers had a lot of feedback, in the thousand+ range. I don't eBay much, so perhaps this means nothing, but mathematically, the negative feedback being given tends to get overshadowed by the hundreds upon hundreds of positive feedback; thus masking the con.
You know what, Amoeba pointed out that you are talking about a different IIT, and not the IIT satellite campus in India - which I believe may also be in Madras. So if so, sorry about that. Everything I said specific to IIT was about the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, which is informally called the "Indian Institute of Technology" - my bad.
I've noticed this as well...
:)
Couldn't have said it better myself. Some foreigners, most notably Thai students, are very very shy people. I took a friend of mine to a Starbucks and bought her a coffee. She showed it to her girlfriends and they were amazed. Obviously they aren't savages. In their own language, they may very well be poets. The girl was excited because she always wanted to go a Starbucks and order one of the fancier Frappacinos, but she didn't know how and felt overwhelmed by the experience. I undoubtedly would feel the same if ordering a Mango Breeze in Bangkok. However, Asians are especially ethnocentrist. Remember, it was China and Japan that closed their gates and ports to all foreigners in order to prevent dilution of their own individual cultures.
Some Asian students are naturally more open than others. The Chinese can be very open and very social. The Indians too, much more so than other central Asian groups. The Japanese and the Koreans seem to have to overcome more in order to feel accepted here, which is sad. A lot of the Zimbabwe students I met are very social, as are the Turks and Indonesians. I think the Taiwanese though are the among the worst offenders next to the Arabs and Pakistanis. I can honest count on my hands the number of Taiwanese students I've met and dealt with that didn't have a monolithic chip on their shoulders.
The Europeans, especially the Turks, Czechs, Germans, Italians, and Spanish are the best. The Croats can be very social, and to a lesser extent the Russians. Unfortunately, that natural desire to explore other cultures is partly responsible for those colonial ambitions of long ago
IIT - Illinois Institute of Technology,
:) I'll have to post a clarification if it isn't obvious.
Or, as it is known in academic circles: Indian Institute of Technology.
IIT has a satellite campus in India. Could be that he is talking about a different IIT in India, in which case - OOPS
I have more class than to drive a "beamer" no matter where they are made.
You kill me, but since I agree with you on the subject of German automotive engineering, I won't call you on what you consider class.
I have a better idea. How about we arrest and EXECUTE in PUBLIC those fat cats at the top of the food chain that sell out America and sell out American jobs?
Was it film-maker Michael Moore who suggested a television show like Cops for parading around corporate criminals? I think it was. I'd certainly go that far, but executing them in public? Well, maybe, but you'd have to include Congress and the White House, and you wouldn't want to go there.
Why? What's wrong with supporting the country that you live in? Is that suddenly "wrong"??? No. I think you go the gist of what I was meaning after your original remark, but just in case: in the digital age with supply-chains that circle the globe, this concept of "Buy American" is outdated and silly. Many of the companies that use the phrase "American made" are flat-out lying. There is no standard behind the logo. A company based in Detroit that adds a final bit of value to an otherwise finished product 99% assembled overseas can still call the completed product "American made"
I don't buy from American companies that that employ foreign labor. I don't buy from foreign owned companies.
You mentioned that you don't buy American cars because they are crap. I agree, but you're backing down from your position. Why buy German anything, old or new? I think your point is that you will choose quality over nationalism first and foremost, but would prefer a 100% American made alternative if the quality was equal. Am I correct? If so, how do you know that an American company does employ foreign labor? For simple consumer goods this is easy, but for complex consumer goods like electronics, this has got to be very time-consuming for you, unless you buy no electronics.
Why do you think Indian Institute of Technology [iitm.ac.in] needs to have Americans attend?
I don't think IIT's campus in India needs American students, but it was obvious I wasn't talking about IIT Madras.
The fact that IIT maintains an additional Indian campus illustrates the problem. IIT is extremely invested in Indian students because it consistently fails to bring in Americans. Even local Chicagoans are preferring Loyola and U. Chicago over IIT. In recent years, IIT has been trying to diversify. The school is now interested in reaching out to Latin America.
IIT has been doing less marketing across the country than it to. It used to be the case that the majority of American campus-based students at IIT (in Chicago) were ROTC cadets. The finances of supporting and educating IIT cadets didn't work to IIT's advantage, so ROTCs became a market of diminishing returns for the university.
What IIT students have is a university that is on its last leg. It must export its product to other countries and import students to fill classrooms. From a business perspective, IIT has liked doing this because the foreign students often pay up front, whereas with Americans they have to deal with the financial aid - which can process late. However, in the long run, this hurts the school.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute just had it's largest freshman class to date, most of them engineering majors.
That's pretty cool! It's understandable that a lot of freshmen drop their majors in favor of easier degree programs. That's always going to happen. As far as the Polytechnics go, I'd say RPI students have it a lot harder than IIT students.
RPI certainly has better food, but that's another story all together.
I you can't buy American, do without. I do. I only deal with American made products, in what I buy and in what I sell..
:)
That's cute. Did you know that the US Army contracts to India as well? Did you know that many of the Bush-Cheney campaign's official sweatshirts were made in Burma? Do you drive an American made car? If so, what country was the engine assembled in? There are a couple of BMW models built here in the US by Americans. Would you buy one?
I'm not meaning to be crass with you... this time. I can feel your pain. If you really want to help the situation though, this "Buy American" crap idea has got to go.
Buying exclusively from an American company that has a predominantly foreign workforce doesn't help things. Refusing to buy from a foreign company that has a strong American workforce only makes things worse.
Here's an idea. We could publicly shame those companies that dump jobs overseas when there is a glut of qualified workers domestically. We could start a movement. Say we get a petition with the names of every out-of-work American who can't find a job due to outsourcing, or who has lost a job to foreign outsourcing. We then create our own virtual Wall. We then make a banner that reads, "I lost my job so that executives can get paid more." or something to the effect. Since top-level executive pay has been increasing dramatically, we'd have a powerful statement. We could go one step further and make a list of companies that outsource and publicize that.
I for one have already taken my Protectionist vow
Bad decision.Life in USA is materialistically awesome. Family wise , i dont wanna explain. I really mean it , u guys should see some laid back countries and relatiosnships of people there.
Flamebait...
Family-wise? What, you don't think Americans have equally awesome relationships?
I can be pretty radical left-wing, but for every critique of American culture, even I can think of twenty or so countries that could learn something from us. Moving on though. How long have you been in the US? We're a pretty edgy nation on the whole today, but then we've had a lot on our minds recently.
The biggest reason that Indians are such good programmers (and engineers) is because, at the current time, only the best and brightest in India
Indians are no better at programming than any other ethnicity. In my experience I've seen more evidence to support the argument that Indians aren't very good programmers at all, but that they are excellent at following instructions. In other words, they can't program or think out of the box. Obviously though, any such argument is severely flawed.
I'd say the specific reason why most Indian and Chinese students studying in the US are in the sciences comes from the fact that sciences, engineering, and computer science are more practical. Math is math. C++ is C++. You don't have to master English or develop a deep understanding of American culture in order to get an 'A' in any of your core classes then get a good job. I have only met a couple of Indians from India who majored in the social sciences or humanity while here. For their perspective, they understood that they wouldn't make much money, and that they were competing with at a severe disadvantage due to the cultural and linguistic differences.
That doesn't mean India's premiere school, IIT, is bad. In fact is it an excellent school, despite the limitations of resources they still have to work with.
I attended IIT. It was an excellent school then, but years later, that dump is hemoraging cash and students. It may not make it into the next decade. One thing IIT definitely doesn't have going for it is American students. There are fewer and fewer American freshmen attending that university each year; but while this is partially due to the school's poor branding effort and bad image, it's also due to the fact that there's less motivation among young Americans to enter the applied sciences and engineering fields.
I myself am not a professional programmer. I just calculate statistics and make generalizations about economics and sociology, but I can program in BASIC, C, and Java. I can even write simple Windows app without using a framework like MFC. There's a glut of tech-savvy Americans like me in the workforce. Many high-schools are realizing that in this day and age, computer expertise will not boost your resume or guarantee you the job. It's a prerequisite just for getting the interview.
Several decades ago Karl Polanyi, IMNSHO the world's astute economic historian and philosopher, discussed pretty clearly how we were building up to a rehash of the world economic crisis of the 1930s.
To put simply, the world is split into the developed industrial and post-industrial nations, and the developing nations. The developed nations (USA, UK, Germany) are typically rich in knowledge assets, whereas the developing nations (India, Mexico, and to an extent, China) are rich in natural resources.We in the US and Western Europe have the creativity and the skills, but tend to be in short supply of labor resources and materials. The reciprocal is true in the developing nations. This permits us to exert bargaining power over these nations, resulting in cheap materials and cheap labor.
Through Western education, developing nations are beginning to develop the creativity and the talent, with which to complement their ownership of the resources. However, we in the post-industrial West (and Japan and Taiwan) are not as able to gain the resources.
This is where things get scary. India has been a good place to pump out cheap code - even if the code isn't innovative or even original. The Chinese are good at assembling parts, despite not being talented at designing them. That's changing. With this growing independence in creativity and talent, combined ownership of the factors of production, developing nations are shifting the balance of power in their favor, and most likely will be able to exert greater economic (and thus political) power over the current post-industrial nations.
In my opinion, American and Japanese ingenuity will continue to save our two economies; however we'll lose much of the bargaining power we already have once it becomes desirable for an Indian firm to outsource some of its processes to cheap American labor. We can definitely expect the price of materials to increase for Western businesses as a result of the balance of power.
In case anyone's interested...
The Great Transformation - The Political and Economic Origins of Our Time, by Karl Polanyi ISBN: 0-8070-5643-X