[Info-vax] Access to _all_ VMS system services and library functions from DCL ?

[Stephen Hoffman]

On 2017-07-11 02:34:27 +0000, Arne Vajhj said:

> On 7/10/2017 12:21 PM, Stephen Hoffman wrote:
> 
>> We can either get DCL dragged forward kicking and screaming into the 
>> early part of this millennium and with a near-inevitable morass of 
>> UTF-8 hackery and the requisite technical debt inevitable with 
>> upward-compatibility, or we can get something better aimed at what 
>> we're going to be doing in 2027, and leaving DCL to quietly graze out 
>> in some code-pasture out behind BoltonHQ.   Well, that for those of us 
>> that aren't already or aren't planning to retire in place, and with 
>> apps that are similarly retired.
> 
> Yes but no.
> 
> Yes - I agree that VMS needs a new scripting language and VMS needs new API's.
> 
> No - I don't think having the new scripting language only support the 
> new API's will work. Some interoperability is needed for a transition 
> period of 1-2 decades.

Invoke the new environment and pass arguments, and invoke the old and 
pass arguments.   Beyond that, spending a whole lot of time with DCL to 
try to drag it forward is... wasteful.

>> TL;DR: DCL and traditional system services APIs just aren't going to be 
>> interesting for folks looking for platforms for new apps.
> 
> Not directly. But I guess they prefer a few people that understand 
> something on the new VMS instead of zero people.

I think you're underestimating the benefits of substantially dragging 
the interfaces forward.   There'll certainly be some folks that'll 
never be pried off DCL and 32-bit and itemlists, and there'll be those 
that adopt the newer approaches at varying paces, particularly as the 
benefits of the newer approaches become apparent.   There'll be DCL 
code around for as long as OpenVMS is around, but — if the new 
environment is beneficial to developers — DCL will follow assembler and 
Bliss into declining use.  Expending effort to drag DCL forward layers 
in more hacks and more complexity and more effort for VSI and for 
end-users.   If the new environment doesn't do substantially better 
than DCL and with less cruft and better capabilities, then there's not 
really a point to even creating and deploying the new environment.


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