Thursday, April 23, 2009

C is going the way of Assembler

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/783238/why-windows-7-isnt-written-in-c-closed

So, a kid just popped up on StackOverflow.com and asked the question “Why isn’t Windows-7 written in C#?” All of the C/C++ programmers on the form blanched at the thought of it. Many others posted about project Singularity, which is a research project inside Microsoft aimed at producing a full operating system in managed code. The comments from the C/C++ guys clearly indicate that they hate the entire idea of Singularity.

The question was closed by one of the forum moderators as “Not a real question”. If he had been honest, he would have said he was shutting down a potential flame war. The question is too politically hot right now.

This is a further evidence that the C/C++ programmers are getting pretty edgy about the incursion of .NET and managed code into sacred ground reserved for them, and them only. They have already lost nearly all of their Windows application turf to .NET, and they are still smoldering about that. Like American Indians on shrinking reservations, they are under presure, and they feel it. They are feeling some real job security stress right now. Every time these questions come up, they C/C++ programmers on the site get pretty dang edgy.

Let’s face it folks: C is going the way of Assembler. It is the expressed wish of the supreme management at Microsoft and SUSE to write as much of their operating system in managed code as possible. Inteface widgets, control pannel utils, little apps, system services, you name it: If there isn't compelling reason to go C, it should be done in C#. C/C++ are increasingly seen as costly and yeilding no real substantive benefits anymore.