From: bill@Celestial.COM (Bill Campbell)
Subject: Re: The sin of MicroSoft
Organization: Celestial Software, Mercer Island, WA
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 17:21:53 GMT

In <1993Jan10.052832.17854@msi.com> bill@west.msi.com (Bill Poitras) writes:

:Pete Skelly (petesk@microsoft.com) wrote:
:: Most people in the core of computer science tend to think things like
:: "address space" or "processing speed" are all computers are.  They study
:: algorithms and logic in order to build more powerful machines designed
:: to help in the study of algorithms and logic.  A lot of them are stuck on
:: ideas on how to make a computer do more than one thing at a time, but have
:: absolutely no idea what those things are.  It wasn't until recently that
:: the idea that "computers and people should work together" really came into
:: being.  This lead to the development of user interface technology by the
:: corporate sector, based on the works of Alan Kay and others at Xeros PARC
:: (These researches were tended to be on the fringe of academia, far from the
:: core research in user confusion occurring in UNIX development).

:I agree that computer science in the commercial world is getting wrapped
:up in things that are just the surface of computer science.  I think
:this is partly due to the education system.  I have a BS in computer
:science, and I remember that most classes taught me how to program, how
:to break apart a problem and solve it in a specific language.  Others
:even taught me a little bit about certain technologies like compilers and
:operating systems.  But it wasn't until my senior year in college that I
:realized that that was only the beginning.  When I studied the analysis
:of algorithms I learned really how to pick apart an algorithm regardless
:of the language.  Complexity theory because an interesting subject.  My
:operating systems class (the last of 3) showed me why I was studying
:proofs in mathmatics classes.  It really showed me how mathematics can
:really benefit computer science.

IMHO what would really benefit computer science and most
programmers would be some practical business experience starting
at the data entry level.  How many programmers writing accounting
software have any background in accounting?  The computer is only
a tool for the end-user and needs to do its job well and
efficiently for that end-user -- they don't give a damn about the
internals so long as it works.

The Operating System, compilers, and underlying hardware
architecture are tools for the system developer and programmer.
Unfortunately MS-DOS and the Intel architecture are pretty poor
tools.  Imagine trying to sell a lathe to a machine shop that
only would work with pieces 64 cm long and require you to make a
bunch of small pieces, weld them together, and file off the welds
by hand!  Now add an unlocked tool box where other users can come
and and take what they want at any time and don't have to put
them back and you have a pretty good description of MS-DOS and
Windows.

Tool and die makers are to machinists as programmers are to end
users.  To be a good tool and die maker you have first have to be
a good machinist and understand how the tools are to be used.

Bill
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