Microsoft working on new systems language

[Paulo Pinto]

On 29.12.2013 06:59, Adam Wilson wrote:
> On Sat, 28 Dec 2013 03:13:53 -0800, Barry L. <barry.lapthorn at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Hello everyone, first post...
>>
>> Just saw this:
>> http://joeduffyblog.com/2013/12/27/csharp-for-systems-programming/
>>
>> D (and Rust) get a mention with this quote:  "There are other
>> candidates early in their lives, too, most notably Rust and D. But
>> hey, my team works at Microsoft, where there is ample C# talent and
>> community just an arm’s length away."
>>
>
> I want to make a point here that many people come to do looking for
> something that is as performant as C++ with the ease of C# or Java, and
> for the most part (using LDC/GDC) you get exactly that. This language
> could convince me to go back to C#. Particularly if it's cross-platform.
> C# is a solid language that is used by a lot of people. And it is
> supported by a large corporate entity with mountains of money and a
> vested interest in making it successful. They can kill bugs and make
> improvements at a phenomenal pace (look at the job they did with C#
> 1.0->2.0).
>
> This needs to be a wake up call for the D community. For a long time D
> has occupied the Programmer Efficient and Safe Native Compiled Language
> niche more or less unchallenged in any serious way (with a nod to Rust).
> If Microsoft actually goes through with this (and they will since the
> .NET runtime is murderous on mobile device battery performance) the
> argument for D will get much harder to make. Yes we can argue the
> ideology of one technical bullet point versus another, but that misses
> the point. The vast majority of programmers pick their languages based
> not on ideological purity, but on ability to get stuff done quickly.
> Obviously this is more than just the language, it's also the
> availability of tutorials and examples. But there isn't much we can do
> about that at this point. And there is a LOT of things that C# can do
> that D cannot. Cross-library namespace composability is big on my
> personal list. Or proper shared libraries. Or, etc.
>
> I know that I wanted out of the Microsoft world for performance and
> cross-platform reasons. However with this project, especially the
> interest in cross-platforming it that they seem to be showing, they will
> have a much easier time getting me back. After all I came from to D from
> C#, it wouldn't be hard to go back.
>
> So while we're celebrating that D mentioned in an article that made the
> front-page of reddit (by virtue of it's author being well-respected and
> the importance of his employer) let us also reflect on what this news
> most likely means for D. Microsoft can invalidate us almost overnight
> with mountains money and the size of their community. Yes we got an
> honorable mention, that also means we're on the radars of people who
> matter...
>


Well, this is nothing new I would say. Microsoft Research already has 
been using C# for systems programming in the context of the Singularity
project (Sing#). They just didn't brought the result of their work into 
mainstream Windows, except for the MDIL compiler used in WP8.

Now with the native political side gaining strength after the Vista 
fiasco, it is to be expected something like this, if the wind doesn't 
change again.

A future native C# compiler was also mentioned at VS 2013 release keynote.

--
Paulo