Robert Redelmeier redelm ev1.net.invalid wrote:

Jason jason_warren ieee.org wrote in part:
"Robert Redelmeier" redelm ev1.net.invalid wrote
Yousuf Khan bbbl67 spammenot.yahoo.com wrote:

But it goes to show why the age of compilers is well and
truly upon us, there's no human way to keep track of these
machine language instructions. Compilers just use a subset,
and just repeat those instructions over and over again.

Hate to break it to you, but you are behind the times.
Compilers are passe' -- "modern" systems use interpreters like
JIT Java.

How else you you think Android gets Apps to run on the
dogs-breakfast of ARM processors out there? It is [nearly]
all interpreted Java. So much so that Dell can get 'roid Apps
to run on its x86 tablet! (AFAIK, iOS still runs compiled Apps
prob'cuz Apple _hatez_ Oracle)

Compilers are NOT passe'

I feel quoted-out-of-context. I was replying to Mr Khan
(restored above) that compiled languages were in turn being
supplanted by interpreted.

The performance penalty for interpreted languages is a large
factor. It's fine in many situations - scripting languages and
the like - and the modern processors are fast enough to make
the performance hit tolerable. Large-scale applications are
still compiled and heavily optimized. Time is money.

I am well aware of the perfomance penalty of interpreted
languages (I once programmed in APL/360) and that compiling has
been preferable for HPC. However, the differences between
compilers are reducing to the quality of their libraries,
especially SIMD and multi-threading. The flexibility of
interpreters might have value.

Not talking about commercial stuff, but...

I use speech and VC++. Speech activated scripting involves (what I
think is) an interpreted scripting language (Vocola) hooked into
NaturallySpeaking (DNS) speech recognition. Additionally, I'm
using a Windows system hook written in C++ that is compiled. The
systemwide hook is for a few numeric keypad key activated short
SendInput() scripts. The much more involved voice-activated
scripting is for a large number of longer scripts. It's a great
combination for making Windows dance. I would say it's cumbersome,
but I have the editors working efficiently here. Currently using
that to play Age of Empires 2 HD. Speech is on the one extreme. I
suppose assembly language would be on the other, but C++ is at
least compiled.

That has nothing to do with any mass of programmers, but it's
useful here and is a very wide range mess of programming for one
task.