!Re: Nuke Redmond!

From: Sean 'Captain Napalm' Conner <spc_at_armigeron.com>
Date: Sat Apr 8 07:01:05 2000

It was thus said that the Great Paul Williams once stated:
>
> Sean 'Captain Napalm' Conner wrote:
> >
> > First off, European programmers are no better. At least when we
> > write unmaintainable piles of crap, it's because we don't know any
> > better. Europeans they seem to just love writing complex code just
> > for complexity's sake.
>
> When you generalise to this degree, you lose all credibility. I work on
> real-time embedded systems and complexity comes with the territory.
> Accusing Europeans en masse of writing complex code for complexity's
> sake is ridiculous. Why don't you just admit you've met about three
> European programmers, ever?

  Well, before this turns into a large flame, let me quote explicitely what
I was replying to:

Richard Erlacher wrote the following:

> Do I really think American programmers will ever take their
> work that seriously, . . . No, but they should at least think about it,
> don't you think?

  That's a farily broad generalization right there. Does that mean Richard
looses all his credibility, too? I mean, he's come right out and stated
that he considers programming an unproductive use of time [1]. Nice, eh?

  -spc (Although at times I'm inclined to believe that most, if not all,
        programmers, reguardless of nationality, love writing complex
        programs just for complexity's sake, or at least for the tin god of
        job security. Nothing conclusive, just a gut feeling (and seeing
        what passes for commercial quality code). Or don't have the time,
        or skill to write clear maintainable code)

[1] I know he meant that he considers the time HE spends programming
        unproductive (or a waste of time, I don't recall the exact quote).
        As a programmer [2] I at first took that the wrong way until I got
        further into his message.

[2] Which I am. But it's that I haven't met many programmers who can
        write solid, readable, maintainable code, American, European, Indian
        or whatever. Three German Ph.Ds that can't write re-entrant code
        for an embedded syatem. A French programmer who talks about
        programming at such a high level that an actual implementation is
        beneath him. An Indian Professor who didn't care if the students'
        programs even compiled! A Caribbean Professor of *SOFTWARE
        ENGINEERING* who hated programming! (yet taught the most convoluted
        methods to maintaining simple data structures).

        Not to be outdone, it was an American Professor who, when asked what
        to do if you don't know how to handle an error, was to simply not
        check for the error.

        Then there's the code I've had to work with. Simple unmaintainable
        messes. It's gotten to the point where I don't want to even be
        considered in the same profession as these people.

        So, the sample size might be too small. But a friend of mine works
        with European programmers (he's American), along with American
        programmers. The Americans just can't program period (there are a
        few exceptions), while the Europeans can, but they love (and he's
        quoted them on this) making it complex, for whatever reason (and
        again, there are a few exceptions).
Received on Sat Apr 08 2000 - 07:01:05 BST