3 ms·
> We coded in assembler, then used macros, then a language like C, Fortran, then more of Java/Go/Puthon/Rust/Ruby et al. The difference is that: 1) All of tho
by discreteevent 2y ago
> We coded in assembler, then used macros, then a language like C, Fortran, then more of Java/Go/Puthon/Rust/Ruby et al.
The difference is that:
1) All of those things are deterministic [1]
2) In all of those cases I can debug at the level of the abstraction.
[1] Meaning: Do exactly what I say. Don't make it up.
- CoastalCoder 2y agoI agree with your overall point. In a certain sense I'd say optimizing compilers aren't deterministic: The same source code can produce different object code, depending on data and algorithms into which a typical programmer has little insight.
- vitiral 2y agoBeing a bit pedantic. Globally but not locally deterministic
- shrimp_emoji 2y agoYour brain's not deterministic.
- kibwen 2y agoCrucially, optimizers are supposed to be semantics-preserving, and if they aren't that's considered a major problem.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]