In article <i3cqia$82...@lust.ihug.co.nz>, Lawrence D'Oliveiro <l...@geek-central.gen.new_zealand> wrote:
> In message <i3bseh$kf...@reader1.panix.com>, Grant Edwards wrote: > > > The problem has nothing to do with the relative merits of the > > languages. The problem is inertia. > > So how was C++ able to get popular in the first place? And how was Java able > to grab some share from it? C++, for all its flaws, had one powerful feature which made it very popular. It is a superset of C. Whatever that may mean from a technical standpoint, it made the language feel safe and comfortable and low-risk to managers. From a more technical standpoint, it had the very real advantage of being able to include all the C system headers and link against C system libraries. As for Java, that's easy. You could launch Java applets from inside a web browser. In those days, anything related to the web was a one-way express ticket to fame and fortune. -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
