VMS stability back in the day (was Re: NuTek Mac comes)

[Cameron Kaiser]

> > That said, it was easier (to me) to write full-on apps and utilities in 
> > DCL than sh or csh.
> 
> [...] Fortunately, most folks seem to 
> agree and csh is pretty niche these days. That's not to say there aren't 
> very enthusiastic users of csh, too.

*tcsh*, yes. I now find it very difficult to use vanilla csh, even though
(being a product of the University of California) that was the first shell
I ever used as an undergraduate.

> > It would be a fairer comparison to develop a complex app in Perl vs DCL 
> > (Perl would win, but it has a lot going for it).
> 
> Feature wise, I don't see much of a comparison. Perl would trounce DCL in 
> a comparison involving functionality. It's not a fair fight or apples to 
> apples in my mind at all. Plus, Perl isn't a CLI interpreter (though I 
> suppose you could try it that way). DCL is. Hence, I'd compare it to shell 
> script. However, you don't have as many opportunities to write line-noise 
> in DCL (joke!).  :-)

TMTOWTDI. (Actually having written full apps in Perl.)

ObOnTopic: I've always found DCL too damn wordy, but I appreciate its
precision. I keep a VAXstation 3100 around just to remind myself "how the
other half live."

-- 
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  Cameron Kaiser * Floodgap Systems * www.floodgap.com * ckaiser at floodgap.com
-- He who Laughs, Lasts. ------------------------------------------------------