[Oberon] Re (2): Usable "Oberon" workstation;

[Chris Burrows]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Oberon [mailto:oberon-bounces at lists.inf.ethz.ch] On Behalf Of
> Liam Proven
> Sent: Friday, 4 December 2020 12:46 AM
> To: ETH Oberon and related systems
> Subject: Re: [Oberon] Re (2): Usable "Oberon" workstation;
> 
> 
> A Generation Lost in the Bazaar
> Quality happens only when someone is responsible for it.
> by Poul-Henning Kamp
> https://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=2349257
> 

Thank you *very* much for that reference. Having enjoyed reading it 2020 might not be such a complete write-off for me after all. The Cathedral and the Bizarre (sic) is summed up so well in this paragraph:

"That is the sorry reality of the bazaar Raymond praised in his book: a pile of old festering hacks, endlessly copied and pasted by a clueless generation of IT "professionals" who wouldn't recognize sound IT architecture if you hit them over the head with it. It is hard to believe today, but under this embarrassing mess lies the ruins of the beautiful cathedral of Unix, deservedly famous for its simplicity of design, its economy of features, and its elegance of execution. (Sic transit gloria mundi, etc.)"

> My interest in Oberon (OS more than language, but the OS because of
> the language) comes from a multi-year-long effort to draft and
> describe a coherent, viable response to this situation, in enough
> detail that someone more skilled than I could implement it.
>

Ditto. It goes a long way to explaining to myself why I am so interested (some might say obsessed), with Oberon. Judging by the enthusiastic feedback I receive from the more prolific users of Astrobe, we are not alone.

Cheers,
Chris Burrows

CFB Software
https://www.astrobe.com