> What is the downside of retaining J602 for systems written using it? The problem is not to do with several back-versions coexisting. It's to do with the prospect of having to continue using them.
At one stage I had 5 back-versions of Filezilla in my /Applications folder, because I hate throwing away an essential working tool. But I never use them, because all has gone well with the latest version. Do you actually use your J5? Have you used it this year? Do you even remember how things worked, if you get a tricky unexpected bug? If you seek help or support for it, can you find anyone who remembers how it worked -- or is that bothered, and won't just tell you to upgrade? (Okay, you're the wrong person to ask, because it's to you people with such questions may think to turn). Words from an old trooper: once you announce a follow-on, you give the existing release the kiss-of-death. If it doesn't promptly die, then it's the new release which is dead in the water, and it's left to a further follow-on to kill the old zombie. If it doesn't die then, the firm dies. Example: XP/Vista vs Win2000. You may think that J follows rules of its own. If so I will eat my words. With relish, because I will have witnessed something groundbreaking. Regarding the Mac, I'm deeply grateful to Norman. And to JSoftware for a commitment to continuing Mac support, in spite of the bad feelings every fresh Mac glitch must give you all. Because otherwise I'd face sitting around for 6 months stuck with 32-bit j602 waiting for a Mac version of j7 which never comes. It would demolish the very reason I have ditched APL for J, trashing 39 years of continuous coding expertise and sending myself back to kindergarten. The typical Mac user, might I suggest, is at the forefront / coalface of their own discipline, eg Number Theory or Arabic studies, with no time to waste on the IT-dept's stifling nonsense, especially M$ nonsense. Vendors get the idea they must support Windows to have any credibility as a software product. If you're charging money for your release, there's grounds for that... but otherwise? What has Windows given the world that's worthwhile and its very own? Minesweeper... (would someone care to continue?) On Sun, Feb 6, 2011 at 9:51 AM, chris burke <[email protected]> wrote: > On Sun, Feb 6, 2011 at 4:11 PM, Ian Clark <[email protected]> wrote: > ... >> >> There is always the option to retain a (frozen) j602 installation to >> run old utilities, but there is a downside to doing that. I'd much >> rather move whole and entire to j701 without delay -- and discard my >> j602. Even a macroprocessor to convert J scripts would be a boon, even >> if it copped-out at difficult bits and left me to migrate them by >> hand. 2 or 3 lines in my whole user library, I don't doubt. > > What is the downside of retaining J602 for systems written using it? I > still have J5 systems that I never updated. Several versions of J can > coexist. > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
