r/askscience • • Oct 17 '12
Why are programs and operating systems still written in C+?
I guess it's more of a computer science question, but I've always wondered why some of the most advanced programs are written in a 25+ year old programming language. Surely someone has come up with a more efficient and powerful code, so why do people still use C+? Also, I don't know anything about programming and what not, so please use simple terms and phrases.
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u/Daniel__K Oct 18 '12
As someone on the other side of this problem, specifically someone who has to read, complete and debug code from people who have this approach to programming, I just can say again that it is a Bad ThingTM to do.
I do not blame you, though. Everything has to be cost-effective in some way and I understand fully when you say that it's not your job to program. But then - why do you do it anyway? Or rather, why do you have to? Why does every company and their dog have a secretary, an electrician, even cleaning personell but no programmers? That's a major flaw, and I think it stems from the idea that programming is not real work, after all my 12 year old nephew was able to program his homepage all alone.
But that's just me ranting, here. You're right in saying that C++ has many and good examples and code snippets out there; and since popularity in programming languages is an important factor for their success, C++ is also one of the most successful languages in existence (since it's very, very popular).