4 ms·

Why "Go to statement considered harmful" is considered a great work ? Edsger W. Dijkstra made that statement in the context of an argument with Donald Knuth. K

• cmiller1 12y ago
  Their metric of what a great work is seems to be entirely based on how many papers cite it.
• taeric 12y ago
  This is akin to the Waterfall method being touted as the dumb way that people used to say to write software. When the entire point of the paper that introduced it by that name did so as a straw man. Also, do be fair. If "Knuth won" the argument, he still ultimately condemned goto statements. To quote: "I personally wouldn't mind having goto in the highest level, just in case I really need it; but I probably would never use it" Further, that paper is on the list. And, I do highly recommend people reading the paper. It is, as usual for Knuth, a very thorough exploration of the topic.
  • reacweb 12y ago
    Yes, all the articles of Knuth are always insightfull. The problem of the article about goto is not its content but how it has been used since its publication to hurt the whole profession. This article is more harmfull than the occasional presence of a goto.
    • taeric 12y ago
      How so?