I can believe there might be some valid reasons “why teaching such archaic junk really is A Good Idea.”
Something like Walt Brainerd’s story (sent earlier today), I’d suspect:
I was asked by one of the major airlines to give a course in F77. Only one kind of obsolete computer worked with their (very expensive) flight simulators, so couldn't be replaced and the only compiler available on the computer was F77. Even this was a few years ago. The upside was I got to fly a 747 simulator one night after class. “Landed” at the old Hong Kong airport, which is pretty exciting for those of you who know about it (well, I sort of landed after bouncing a few times :-( ).
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The latest high-tech gadgets are not always the best “idea.” I learned this about 75 years ago when my dad got his first car with Hydraulic Brakes. Previously, he had to apply a lot more pressure to the pedals of the mechanical brakes, but the car would ALWAYS stop. But the new high-tech system was known to fail occasionally and if it did you’d have NO BRAKES. Through the years the “problems” of high-tech systems (such as hydraulic brakes) got eased by wrapping them in more and higher tech, not always for the best in the long run.
I get my medical care at Kaiser Permanente, and they have automated all their records but the monitor in the exam room shows the log-on screen for Windows XP which dates back to 2001. The features of new Windows releases up to W-7 (maybe even W-8, now in Beta) do not seem to outweigh the cost of continually upgrading software (and some hardware) and retraining.
Loren P Meissner
“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” – George Santayana
“Those who cannot remember the pasta are condemned to reheat it.” – Freshman dorm resident
From: Fortran 90 List [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Colin Watters
Sent: Tuesday, March 06, 2012 11:28 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: fortran iv
I have a copy of McCracken.
I too used a library copy of this book as my first reference in a Fortran undergrad course in 1972. The copy I now have was purchased from Amazon last August (it cost £2.78, with p&p free). I can loan it to you if you like, but first, I want you to justify to everyone why teaching such archaic junk really is A Good Idea.
Kind regards
Qolin
+44 777 182 5542
P.S. Amazon has more copies, starting at £0.01 plus £2.80 P&P, and going up to £77.67...