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Yeah, but even internally it makes little sense. You've replaced a very simple system built on a widely-known language with a massive ecosystem, something you c
by toyg 4y ago
Yeah, but even internally it makes little sense. You've replaced a very simple system built on a widely-known language with a massive ecosystem, something you could even call "boring technology" these days (python), with a larger implementation using a niche language with a small ecosystem and a minuscule pool of skilled developers. It's now even more unlikely you'll ever get any patches from outsiders, it will be harder to hire people to maintain it, harder to monitor and expand the system... And this for a critical system.
I mean, as a job-security device, I'm sure it works out great. As a strategic business decision, though, it looks debatable as a minimum - and I'm being charitable.
- acdha 4y agoNot sure you could call Rust a niche language any more given how many devices it’s running on, but especially at the organization which created it that seems like an understandable choice. I have a lot of experience with Python but can totally sympathize with people running a highly-visible service prioritizing resource utilization.
- toyg 4y ago> Not sure you could call Rust a niche language any more First comment under "The Adoption of Rust in Business": https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34691509 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34691509 A bit further down: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34691893 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=34691893
- acdha 4y agoYes, note that’s .gov where they also have trouble hiring technical staff of every sort. I happen to work in .gov and we have multiple people writing Rust so anecdotes are not probably reliable. This is better - still a self-selected audience but a large one - and it shows around 10%. That’s not huge but I think it’s larger than “niche” given the growing popularity and impact. https://survey.stackoverflow.co/2022 https://survey.stackoverflow.co/2022