RE: Assembly programmers do it a byte at a time

[Scott Klement <rpg400-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello,

> BTW, I think in business programming (from the management/end user point
> of view) the first criterion is usually does it work?  The second is how
> fast can you write it?

You're right.  Though, I think the second criteria is actually "how much 
will it cost for you to write it?", which often translates to the amount 
of time.

> Good program design isn't even a nice to have. If you need to take 
> longer to design a good program than to slap something together that 
> will work.....Of course you run into problems if the program needs to be 
> extended or changed to reflect changes in business rules but...

True, but for someone who is proficient with program design, it doesn't 
take any longer to do it right. Indeed, he'll be quicker in the long run, 
because he'll already have routines from the previous job that he can 
re-use.

The hard part is convincing people to do undergo the learning curve 
necessary to move from "monolith" to "proficient in modular program 
design". Particularly when there'll be a period of time where the latter 
takes longer.

This, actually, is one of the great strengths of RPG. Since it has all of 
the tools of the previous generation of RPG, as well as the more advanced 
tools, you can keep working as a monolithic programmer while you 
experiment and gradually move forward.

It's also one of the greatest weaknesses of RPG, since so many people get 
frustrated with learning the new stuff, and never move forward.