-The father of ——c+++was impressed by Zuo 2002.50438+05438+0.4.
Friends who love C++ please don't get me wrong. I'm not implying that "C++ is dying" or anything like that. Semantically speaking, as a programming language, C++ certainly has no future. In fact, what I want to say is a person's back. Therefore, this topic seems a bit abrupt, even a little grandstanding. But I think, in the C++ community, everyone will agree that there is a name that is a symbol of C++. The name is bjarne stroustrup, of course.
Dr. bjarne stroustrup, 1950 was born in Denmark, graduated from Arrus University in Denmark and Cambridge University in England, and studied at & AT& T director of large-scale programming research department; Bell labs and ACM members. 1979, Stroustrup began to develop a language, which was called "C with classes" at that time and later evolved into C++. 1998, the ANSI/ISO C++ standard was established. In the same year, Stroustrup published the third edition of his classic book C++ Programming Language.
Strauss troup first visited China in June 2002.
The longer I have been in contact with the IT industry, the more obviously I find that the topics that have been heated up in the media are often just trivial matters, while the events that really have profound significance and influence are easy to be unknown.
Stroustrup's visit to China caused a great sensation in the technical circle. For many years, programmers in China have been groping in the dark through indirect channels such as translating works (often with a long time lag). It was not until the popularity of the Internet that we were able to track down the latest technology at the first time, exchange technology with our foreign counterparts, and gradually narrow the distance with the world. Today, we finally have the opportunity to consult this world-class master face to face and listen directly to the most authoritative voice in this field. We don't have to think hard about the author's thoughts behind poor translation, and we don't have to be confused by amazing theories that often come from experts with little knowledge and have been reported many times. After learning the news of Stroustrup's visit to China, I told some friends that this was a start. I hope that the domestic technical community can seize this opportunity and rely on everyone's efforts to establish a stable communication mechanism with the international technical community. I hope this event marks that China programmers are no longer an isolated and forgotten group in the international community, but truly become a member of the world family.
However, apart from some publicity made by the organizers, almost no mainstream media saw Stroustrup's arrival, although Stroustrup's achievements and influence on the computer industry are comparable to those of anyone in the contemporary era, although the significance of this event far exceeds the trivial matters of many IT circles in China.
Stroustrup's visit to China lasted for half a month and passed through Beijing, Xi, Hangzhou and Shanghai. During this period, I had the honor to meet him three times.
The first time was the day after he arrived in Beijing. Two friends of zhanghua invited him to a restaurant at the back door of Beihai, leaving me an opportunity to have dinner with him. I still hate traffic jams in Beijing, because it happened to be a weekend, it was raining heavily, and I arrived at my destination more than an hour later than scheduled. When I stormed into the restaurant angrily, I saw a foreigner sitting in the innermost corner between two friends in zhanghua.
He stood up and shook my hand politely. He himself looks like that famous photo (famous in the C++ community), a little bald and casually dressed. He is not so much an expert visiting China as a blue-collar worker who eats in his own home. I stammered in English to explain why I was late. He nodded and said "Oh" several times, as if suffering from traffic jam. Although we have never met before, the look on each other's faces and a few simple words suddenly narrowed our distance. This sentence sounds like a cliche in the book, but I did feel this way when I was around.
Before this meeting, I had imagined what Stroustrup would look like and whether he would be arrogant. Because I know that a great man is often a little paranoid in his personality, not to mention being the father of C++? But contrary to my imagination, Stroustrup is very kind, with excellent sense of humor unique to technicians, loves to laugh, and even a little naive. After I said a compliment, he was as embarrassed as a child.
The restaurant is noisy, but it is not a good place to talk. My oral English is not good at all, and it was abandoned for several years after I graduated from college. However, in the face of Stroustrup, for some reason, I actually got up the courage to tell him something in this Yang Jingbin-style English. I told him that I had translated one of his FAQs about the style and technology of C++, and I was reading his masterpiece C++ Programming Language. I told him that there are many C++ programmers in China, and everyone has been expecting him for a long time. I told him that programmers in China lack communication with foreign communities, and I hope we can promote this communication; I also apologize for my spoken English (BS understands that English is not his mother tongue) and hope to communicate by email. ...
Stroustrup then replied in a series of deep English, but not a serious academic speech, but a casual and devoted speech. Obviously, he impressed himself first and then others. When he speaks brilliantly, he will look around and laugh with us.
This is an ordinary restaurant with ordinary food. BS is not much different from foreigners all over Beijing. At some point, I suddenly had an impulse. I wonder, will these people sitting next to us talking about themselves know that this foreigner in the corner is a master who has made great contributions to mankind?
"People are really different ..." I thought.
As BS has to catch a plane to Xi early tomorrow morning, our time together is quite limited. Walking out of the shop, we waved goodbye. My harvest is the signature of BS and a photo in Chinese version of C++ programming language.
When I got home, I walked in my room all night. My roommate asked me, "You seem very excited today?"
"Of course," I replied, "because I saw the peak of this field."
Stroustrup's itinerary is to settle in Beijing first, and then fly to Xi 'an for an official visit in the order of Xi 'an-Beijing-Hangzhou-Shanghai. While waiting for Stroustrup to return to Beijing, I saw a post on csdn: bjarne stroustrup's lecture in Xi 'an was very disappointing. After reading it, I was not disappointed with the content of the lecture, but criticized some phenomena in the activity, which was my biggest concern. In fact, I know that the organizers have made great efforts and some technical problems are excusable. For the event itself, it is not a big deal. But what moved me was that the article talked about the questions raised by the audience after Stroustrup's speech. The original post is as follows:
"... the host announced that he would start asking questions and went out, and then the chaotic scene began. I sat on the floor and listened to several questions, mostly asking which language is better, C++, C# or Java. These people may not know bjarne stroustrup, and he himself said that he would not comment on the advantages and disadvantages of this language, but these people kept asking, and some even asked bjarne stroustrup. Do you like computers? I don't want to comment on this kind of problem. This is a good opportunity, so ... alas! ! I can clearly see the unhappy expression on bjarne stroustrup's face. When I saw more and more people gathered in front of me and began to grab the microphone desperately, I decided to leave early. I stood up from the ground, patted the dust on my body and strode away. "
I haven't dealt with Stroustrup before, and I don't know his impression of China. I used to wonder what Stroustrup thought of China. Do you regard us as a remote and wild place, just like a small country in Africa? If so, it's not surprising. After all, China's international image is the IT market, not the IT leader. Of course, it is impolite to make such a guess casually, but only if you can win the respect of others. When I learned that I had the opportunity to meet Stroustrup, my friends and I encouraged each other: "Don't embarrass domestic programmers."
More than a year ago, I once said to my friend, "The level of programmers in China has improved a lot in recent years. I didn't know how bad my level was before, but now I know how bad my level is. " The core of IT technology is abroad, and we haven't opened the country for a long time, and our level is not as good as others. There's nothing we can do. Knowing that your level is poor is nothing more than two points. One is to admit the reality, and the other is to find ways to catch up.
Since I entered the computer industry, I have met countless people who think they are masters, so I don't need to elaborate on all kinds of arrogance, although they are far from qualified as students in front of Stroustrup. How many people in China are using C++? How many people have a thorough and comprehensive understanding of C++ (although I know that high-level people must have it)? Who is supporting our national software industry?
The expected master finally came, and the expected face-to-face communication scene finally appeared. Facing the monitor screen, I suddenly felt a sense of loneliness and desolation.
The second time I met Stroustrup, it was also in the hotel. I was the host, and several programmers friends in Beijing had a small-scale exchange with him. Damn history repeats itself. It's the weekend and it's raining heavily. I am late again. The difference is that when I rushed into the restaurant again in a rage, I saw a different scene. Stroustrup sat on one side of the table, and the seats on the left and right were empty. Everyone else is sitting opposite him, everyone is silent, only he is eating silently. He seems to be used to my lateness and asks me, "Are you lost?"
Perhaps influenced by this atmosphere, I didn't know what to say when I sat next to him. Although I really want to say a few words of apology for what happened to him in Xi, I can't open my mouth.
He picked up an English newspaper in his hand, pointed to the University of Texas and said to me, "What a small world." It turns out that he has been hired as a professor by the University of Texas. I asked, "Then when do you leave?": t？” He said in&; T still retains his position. I also asked him about Lippmann joining Microsoft as chief Architect. To my surprise, he seems to think highly of Microsoft's compiler.
But on the whole, Stroustrup was much more silent than last time, seldom laughed, and ate silently most of the time. I finally couldn't help asking a question that might be impolite: "Do you feel lonely in China?" Stroustrup doesn't understand the word "loneliness". When he understood, he said seriously, "No." Pointing to the opposite side and outside, he said (in English, of course), "They, and many others, are very kind to me." "I hope China can leave a good impression on you." "This is already the case." I hope so.
After dinner, stroop went to the hotel to be interviewed by the media. I continued to chat with some friends. Although they, like me, are unable to speak freely with Stroustrup because of the limitation of spoken English, their excitement is beyond words. One of them is still clamoring to apply for Stroustrup's graduate student, although the latter said that he has received thousands of applications.
On the footbridge of Baishiqiao, watching the traffic coming and going in the dark sky, I told a friend that I felt wronged for Stroustrup. People like Bill Gates and Larry Ellision will be regarded as national guests when they visit China, and they will be widely publicized in the media. Stroustrup is on their level of achievement and influence. Why is his trip to China so simple and low-key? Answer after thinking about the general plan, because Gates and Ellison, as the heads of large commercial companies, can directly influence the market and the government in China. Stroustrup invented C++ and actually mastered the standard of C++ language, but his influence on the industry is not so direct, and he himself is not rich. I said, "I know, but I still feel wronged for him."
Stroustrup invented the C++ language in 1979. Up to now, it has been more than twenty years, and it has been struggling for the perfection, development and standardization of C++. In Stroustrup's ideal (which he has been advocating persistently), C++ should be a neutral and open language, independent of any platform and not manipulated by any commercial company, and its standard is in ISO C++ Standards Committee. At this point, C++ and Delphi are essentially different from languages like Java.
Although C++ appeared long ago, its ISO standard was not officially promulgated until 1998. Stroustrup is dissatisfied with the fact that commercial companies have turned C++ into various messy dialects for their own interests, and has spent a lot of effort on the standardization of C++. With the joint efforts of volunteers from all over the world, the new C++ standard and standard library have been perfected. In this sense, Stroustrup created not only a language, but also a culture. Stroustrup has succeeded (C++ is probably the most widely used general industrial language at present), but he still has a lot to do. Stroustrup's trip to China can be seen as a positive contact between him and his ideas and the software industry in China. As far as I can see, at least the atmosphere of China's software industry is not quite in tune with the temperament of Strauss troup.
There is a so-called IEEE interview with Stroustrup on the Internet, which is obviously an April Fool's joke. Stroustrup preached that he deliberately made C++ design difficult to learn in order to increase the programmer's salary. I don't know who translated it into Chinese, which led me to find the forwarding of this thing in almost every forum (including non-technical forums) I often go to (sometimes again and again), followed by a lot of serious comments. In the subsequent correspondence, I told Stroustrup about it, and he obviously took it as a joke and replied, "As long as they don't believe it, it doesn't matter."
How can I answer him and tell him that everyone actually believes him?
The last time I saw Stroustrup was at a C++ language seminar in Peking University. I didn't go to the speech in Tsinghua the day before, and it is said that it was quite successful. This seminar of Peking University is internal in nature and small in scale. The way of voucher admission should ensure the quality of participants. Also attending the meeting were several heavyweights, including the translator of C++ programming language and Professor Qiu Zongyan from Peking University. In addition, there are quite a few estimates.
I can't be late again. I arrived at the meeting an hour early. As soon as I arrived, people came in one after another and asked each other if the seminar of the father of C++ was here. Many people bring various versions of Stroustrup's works, and they must have come to ask for autographs. Finally, Stroustrup was surrounded by people from Huazhang Company and Peking University Planning Department. Today, he looks in good spirits.
First of all, Stroustrup gave a speech entitled "Speak C++ like a native speaker", and briefly expounded the design idea and several programming styles of C++. The content is relatively basic, and the speeches given in Xi Jiaotong University and Tsinghua are the same. I didn't pay much attention. Next, the people invited by the organizer made a more formal speech. Qiu Zongyan came first, Bear Festival came second, and I came third. My question is about developing cross-platform programs through C++ language, asking why C++ doesn't have a cross-platform framework like Delphi, and whether it intends to develop existing standard libraries in this field. This question is flexible, and can be discussed in detail or brought here in a few words. But Stroustrup, like answering the first two questions, gave a very detailed and patient answer. Starting from the goal and positioning of C++, he talked about the difference between standard libraries and proprietary libraries of commercial companies, and talked about the possibility that standard libraries would not develop into an all-inclusive framework due to financial problems. Finally, he suggested that I could try some excellent third-party libraries. Stroustrup kept staring at my eyes and gesturing when I was talking, so serious that I felt guilty, because my understanding often couldn't keep up with what he said.
The most wonderful thing is the free question and answer time, and many people are already eager to try. I can't recall the specific situation at that time in detail. In a word, I spoke enthusiastically. In my impression, it seems that there are no particularly creative questions (of course, it is difficult to have such good questions in this kind of impromptu speech), but most of them are quite level. In fact, you don't have to listen to what they ask, you just need to see those dedicated and slightly nervous young faces, which can make people feel familiar and kind ... Needless to say, there are actually many questions that are a waste of time, because Stroustrup has answered similar questions many times, and you can find the answer by searching online. This situation can be explained from one side. On the whole, there is still too little communication between China programmers and foreign countries, and they still lack the mind and vision to see the world.
"Stroustrup is poor, and people ask these same questions over and over again," a friend who is in charge of accompanying Stroustrup couldn't help whispering. It is easy to imagine that he has seen this scene many times. Nevertheless, Stroustrup took pains to answer every question, reminding people of missionaries in modern history. This patience really makes me admire myself. Obviously, he is in a high mood today, especially when he encounters good problems, and his playing time far exceeds the scheduled time limit. After several hours of intense discussion, Stroustrup was a little tired, and later he had to speak with his back against the wall (I don't know why, he just didn't want to sit upright, and he kept standing during the free question and answer session, and often even stepped on the chair with one foot). But when the host indicated to him that the time was up and it was over, he waved his hand and said that he would continue the discussion. There was a well-meaning laugh at the scene ...
The dinner was hosted by an associate professor in Peking University, accompanied by several editors of Huazhang, Meng Yan and Wang Xin of C-View, and Chen Rong of Ketai. Chen Rong has worked in Microsoft for many years, and her English is very good. She talked with Stroustrup for a long time, talking about some things in the industry, and basically did not involve technical issues.
At the end of the song, we walked out of Peking University, and Stroustrup would fly to Shanghai the next day. Before getting on the bus, he shook hands with each of us seriously, said goodbye and thanked us. I wonder what the trip to China brought him? But I know that he has brought us a lot, including the contacts to be established in the future. In the night in Beijing, the Dane, who was over 50 years old and had some gray hair, turned away, leaving a silent figure.
Goodbye, stroop.