Date: Thu, 13 May 1999 11:31:38 -0600 From: Brett Glass <brett@lariat.org> To: chris@calldei.com Cc: Jamie Bowden <ragnar@sysabend.org>, chat@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: BSD, GPL, the world today. (fwd) Message-ID: <4.2.0.37.19990513105719.04696100@localhost> In-Reply-To: <19990513113714.B19394@holly.dyndns.org> References: <4.2.0.37.19990513102444.04697e40@localhost> <4.2.0.37.19990513095524.04429440@localhost> <Pine.BSF.3.96.990513104700.2143C-100000@beelzebubba.sysabe <4.2.0.37.19990513095524.04429440@localhost> <19990513112210.A19394@holly.dyndns.org> <4.2.0.37.19990513102444.04697e40@localhost>
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At 11:37 AM 5/13/99 -0500, Chris Costello wrote: >Also, integers should be only 4 bits, and bytes should only be >2 bits long. Nothing personal, but the sentence above reflects a fear of safeguards that almost amounts to paranoia. It seems to have been instilled in many programmers that the ability to engage in well-known unsafe practices -- even if there are better and safer ways to do the same things -- is essential to being able to program at all. Making programming tools safe does not unduly limit them. To use an example from the world of carpentry: The circular saw is probably the most dangerous and poorly designed power tool. It's built the way it is not for the sake of the carpenter but for the sake of cheap manufacturing. (It's easy and inexpensive to attach a circular blade directly to a simple induction motor.) The guard, while there usually is one present, only covers part of the blade. And the blade only penetrates to its full depth in the middle, so that one must run the saw out a substantial distance in front of and behind the work to get a full cut. Unlike a "worm gear saw," which puts the motor on the opposite side, it actually hides a good few of the work (and potential obstructions) from a right-handed carpenter. It kicks back and jams even when used properly, and has no protection against slicing through its own electrical cord. The sole plate is difficult to square to the blade, so most cuts made with a circular saw aren't quite straight. Yet, even though table saws, band saws, reciprocating saws, and even water jet saws do a much better job in most applications, the circular saw is the most common type of electrically powered saw anywhere. Why? Mainly because it's cheap and readily available -- sort of like C. What's really scary, though, is that some carpenters I've seen are foolish enough to remove the partial, retractable blade guard that DOES come with the circular saw. Or to jam the safety latch on the power switch open. These are usually the ones who are short a finger or two. --Brett To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-chat" in the body of the message
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