From http://www.moserware.com/2008/03/computing-history-matters.html:

(Quoting Bjarne Stroustrup):
"SIMULA's class-based type system was a huge plus, but its run-time 
performance was hopeless:

The poor runtime characteristics were a function of the language and its 
implementation. The overhead problems were fundamental to SIMULA and 
could not be remedied. The cost arose from several language features and 
their interactions: run-time type checking, guaranteed initialization of 
variables, concurrency support, and garbage collection..."

(And Jeff Moser writes):
"I find it amusing that a lot of the "new" ideas in languages and 
runtimes are just bringing back things from Simula that C++ took out."

It boggles the mind, doesn't it?  That we've spent fourty years 
discovering the necessity of features that Simula had, but were 
considered too advanced for the time?

Kind of like how many algorithms in CG were actually written about in 
the 70s, but computers were too slow to implement them realtime until now.

-- 
...Ben Chambers
www.pacificwebguy.com

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Chambers wrote:

> It boggles the mind, doesn't it?  That we've spent fourty years 
> discovering the necessity of features that Simula had, but were 
> considered too advanced for the time?

I'd comment on that, but the link doesn't appear to work...

> Kind of like how many algorithms in CG were actually written about in 
> the 70s, but computers were too slow to implement them realtime until now.

Well, in fairness, CG *is* in inherantly math-intensive field.

-- 
http://blog.orphi.me.uk/
http://www.zazzle.com/MathematicalOrchid*

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Invisible wrote:
> Chambers wrote:
> 
>> It boggles the mind, doesn't it?  That we've spent fourty years 
>> discovering the necessity of features that Simula had, but were 
>> considered too advanced for the time?
> 
> I'd comment on that, but the link doesn't appear to work...

Blah, that colon on the end isn't supposed to be part of the link! 
Here's the correct one:

http://www.moserware.com/2008/03/computing-history-matters.html

-- 
...Ben Chambers
www.pacificwebguy.com

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Invisible wrote:
> Well, in fairness, CG *is* in inherantly math-intensive field.

Not really. It's more a massively-parallelizable field. :-) Each 
individual step (unless you're simulating QED) is pretty simplistic. You 
just have to do it 23 gazillion times.

Just like the real world. :-)

-- 
   Darren New / San Diego, CA, USA (PST)
     "That's pretty. Where's that?"
          "It's the Age of Channelwood."
     "We should go there on vacation some time."

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Darren New wrote:
> Invisible wrote:
>> Well, in fairness, CG *is* in inherantly math-intensive field.
> 
> Not really. It's more a massively-parallelizable field. :-) Each 
> individual step (unless you're simulating QED) is pretty simplistic. You 
> just have to do it 23 gazillion times.
> 
> Just like the real world. :-)

Is *that* why the human brain is massively parallel, yet only runs at 
200 MHz?

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Orchid XP v8 wrote:

> Is *that* why the human brain is massively parallel, yet only runs at 
> 200 MHz?

I think the M in MHz does not belong there:

http://vadim.oversigma.com/MAS862/Project.html

Regards,
John

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Chambers wrote:

> Blah, that colon on the end isn't supposed to be part of the link! 
> Here's the correct one:
> 
> http://www.moserware.com/2008/03/computing-history-matters.html

Mmm, interesting. For some reason, I thought "core memory" had something 
to do with superconducting liquid mercury...

Personally, I find it astounding that when I was 5 years old, playing 
with my dad's BASIC-powered C64, people were working on the Miranda 
programming language. And even when I was 10 years old and just starting 
to get massively into programming, Haskell had been invented.

(As I understand it, Haskell is extremely similar to Miranda, but 
non-commercial.)

And yet, it's still not mainstream. I guess that should be a pretty 
clear indicator that it never will be...

-- 
http://blog.orphi.me.uk/
http://www.zazzle.com/MathematicalOrchid*

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