Re: Low-level vs. High-level programming (was My First Computer)

["Randy McLaughlin" <randy@nospam.com>]

"wildstar" <wildstar128@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:Xns939FEBDA66869wildstar128hotmailco@216.168.3.44...
> "Randy McLaughlin" <randy@nospam.com> wrote in
> news:dZvIa.52699$nx5.51384@fe05.atl2.webusenet.com:
>
>
> > You have shown you know very little of computers.  Computers have only
> > recently gotten to the point of doing the functions you state are
> > requirements to program them.  Your ignorance of the history of both
> > computers and programming is extremely funny.  I can not believe that
> > anyone with even half a brain like you have can say with a straight
> > face that the developers of the Eniac ever expected to do one thing
> > you say is required for programming, just as 100 years ago anyone
> > programming looms would ever have thought the same thing.
> >
> > <snip>
>
> ENIAC really didn't have a "programming language". Programming Languages
> started in the late 50s to early 60s. ENIAC was a computer but was
> manually  hard wired to each state in which on wanted.
>
> Then again Puch Cards where used to configure the hardware.
> Ok, if we go to such definition then any state changing effect one does
> to a computer may be considered programming. The modern definition has
> gotten more rigid by the years when defining differences between script
> languages and programming languages and markup languages. HTML is not
> used to create application but I can assure you that most of what I
> described have been around for the last 15-25 years.

The Eniac DID have a language - machine language.  Later machines eased the
task by making program boards that held jumper wires in a peg-board like
araingement.  Later von Neumann designs allowed for other media (punch
cards, mag tape, etc.) to load the computer memory with programs.  The truth
is everyone reading this post has an "older" non-von Neumann machine next to
them, for 10 points who can name it first?

I have enjoyed this thread, the thread has been nothing more than a mental
joust.  It is obvious you know little or nothing about: programming,
computer, computer programming the mental joust for me has been with an
unarmed opponent.  You missed every single important part of the thread:
Programming can be extremely simple tasks such as programming a VCR (also a
machine language).  A person that programs a VCR is programming the VCR but
that same person is not a "programmer":  A HTML program is a program the
person that creates the program is doing little more than word processing
and not a "programmer".  Simple programs such as windows batch files, unix
shell files etc. are programs and you can buy plenty of programming books
for them.  The people who create these programs are not "programmers".

HTML as well as thousands of other tasks done everyday are computer
programming.  After years of training to become computer programmers people
don't like to look on these mundane tasks as programming, but they are.  It
is not just a technicality it is by definition.