[Info-vax] Userland programming languages on VMS.

[Arne Vajhøj]

On 2/4/2022 1:31 PM, Simon Clubley wrote:
> On 2022-02-04, Arne Vajhøj <arne at vajhoej.dk> wrote:
>> On 2/4/2022 8:56 AM, Simon Clubley wrote:
>>> On 2022-02-03, Dave Froble <davef at tsoft-inc.com> wrote:
>>>> I wish C just wasn't ...
>>>
>>> What would be your suggested alternative for a system programming
>>> language suitable for use within a kernel ?
>>
>> There were plenty back in the days. IBM PL/S, DEC Bliss, HP SPL etc..
>> Disclaimer: I don't really know these languages.
>>
>> For the future Rust seems like the only viable candidate. There is
>> strong OS interest for it. The interest for Go seems to focus
>> more on the layer just above the kernel (like container stuff).
>>
> 
> For now, Rust is highly fashionable, but so was Ruby at one time.

Ruby was pretty hot like 10 years ago. Ruby did not end up
taking over the world. But the language is still widely used
(I would call it a tier 2 language).

Rust's success is not guaranteed either. It got some good backing.
And it is a very narrow field. So I would say that it has a fair
chance.

But anything can happen. Maybe it will take over the world. Maybe
it will continue as a small but relevant language. Maybe it will die
within the next decade or two.

What are probabilities? 20%, 60% and 20% maybe.

> It really is a pity there isn't a viable Wirth style language in the mix
> these days (_without_ mandatory uppercase keywords :-) ) that could
> be used in kernel code. Readability and strong type safety (and improved
> robustness in general) all in one language would sit very nicely with me.

I agree.

But the industry went in another direction.

Pascal and Ada are niche languages (what I call tier 3 languages) and
Modula-2 is practically extinct.

Arne