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C++/Java Arguments Written Off
By Doug Caverly
Staff Writer
Article Date: 2010-02-18
When shopping for a new vehicle (or just keeping up on the latest developments), car guys will pore over performance stats, looking closely at acceleration times, skidpad numbers, and top speeds. But in real life, these details might not matter, and one expert recently argued that comparisons between C++ and Java are similarly pointless.
In reference to the cars: when a person's making the daily slog to work in bumper-to-bumper traffic, does it benefit him (or her) to have a car that can hit 60 MPH in six seconds? Or one that can accelerate up to 150 MPH? Or one that can handle hairpin turns with no problem? The differences can become theoretical.
Scott Quint likewise argued with respect to C++ and Java, "[W]e are at the point of comparing milliseconds and thus we are in realm of the silly comparisons for most applications. That level of performance really only matters when there are no other performance bottlenecks and where the difference would actually be perceptible (i.e., a 3d interactive adventure game or crunching huge amounts of scientific data)."
Quint also pointed out, "I can tell you from experience that software decisions become business culture in every business that is serious about the use of computers. If the business decided in the past that C/C++ was the way to go I can assure you that they will not ask that question again unless their current staff cannot produce a satisfactory product for the currently proposed project."
So perhaps C programmers shouldn't let themselves be baited into arguments on this topic. Just saving the time that would otherwise be wasted on them could go a long ways towards addressing any questions about efficiency.
About the Author:
Doug is a staff writer for WebProNews. Visit WebProNews for the latest eBusiness news.
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