[Info-vax] Programming languages, was: Re: DECUServe is a Hobbyist Chapter

[Arne Vajhøj]

On 7/7/2020 8:25 AM, Simon Clubley wrote:
> On 2020-07-06, Arne Vajhøj <arne at vajhoej.dk> wrote:
>> And if I were to create an accounting package from scratch, then
>> I would seriously consider a model with some foundation in a
>> static typed compiled language, but all the code that may
>> require changes due to management decisions and changes in
>> regulations in a dynamic language (like Python).

> There might be an argument for supporting the easy customising of
> front-end reporting tools, but implementing the backend in the way
> you describe is unlikely to provide real benefits.

The benefits like low LOC/FP ratio does not magically disappear
in backend code.

> It is really hard to predict what might need changing as the result
> of future management decisions and future regulations.

Absolutely.

But that is exactly why I said "may require changes" not
"will require changes".

> The best way to design the back end architecture is to make it as table
> driven as possible with as little business logic embedded in the
> actual code as possible. That can be done independently of backend
> programming language.

That is a classic approach. But it rarely works well for large systems.

Configurable values that are just used as values without impacting the
execution flow are fine.

Configurable values that impacts the flow is really a form of code
being interpreted. And that mix of interpreting code and
"assembler style config value code" is very costly to
maintain.

Arne