Posted by cwdjrxyz on 07/17/06 03:54

Toby Inkster wrote:
> cwdjrxyz wrote:

To put the portion of my reply that you quote below in context, the
following should also have been quoted:

> See:
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-level_programming_language

Which includes:
"Note that the terms "high-level" and "low-level" are inherently
relative. Originally, assembly language was considered low-level and
COBOL, C, etc. were considered high-level, as they allowed the
abstractions of functions, variables and expression evaluation, and
also that they had to be compiled to assembly before being compiled
into machine code. Many programmers today might refer to C as
low-level, as it still allows memory to be accessed by address, and
provides direct access to the assembly level."

> > An about face, if I ever saw one. I much prefer the earlier usage
> > refered to above. Of course, with such a history of usage, the term low
> > and high level now should not be used because it now can cause
> > confusion. So I guess we should all just specify the language involved.
>
> Not at all.
>
> Consider the terms "cheap" and "expensive". 10 years ago, a 400 MHz
> Pentium II Celeron computer with 32 MB RAM and 3.2 GB hard disk for £350
> would be considered cheap. Today, paying the same amount for the same
> computer would be considered very expensive.
>
> In London, 30 deg C is considered a hot summer's day; but in Sydney it's
> not; if the Sun's surface temperature suddenly dropped to 30 deg C,
> astronomers would count that as a very cold spell.
>
> This doesn't make the terms "cheap" and "expensive", or "hot" and "cold"
> confuding though; one simply realises that these things lie along a scale;
> A can be hot compared against B, but cold compared with C.
>
> Similarly, C++ is high-level compared with Assembly code, but *low-level*
> compared with Javascript.

If you like, but I don't like. I guess we can agree to disagree.
Because of the very limited scope of what Javascript can do compared
with C++ or even Fortran IV, for that matter, it is a very low level
language in the sense of the variety of things it can do. Moreover it
does not have to be compiled as do C++ and Fortran, and in the past
having to be compiled was one basis for considering a language as being
higher level as when comparing Fortran to assembly language. Really all
of this is of little importance, at least to me. When it comes to
working with real programs the exact language and version you use is
what is important, not the position of it in an arbitrary pecking
order. This discussion has been a bit more interesting than the weekend
crossword puzzle, but the weekend is over, the parrot needs a bath, and
hopefully he will not bite me!

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