----- Original Message ----- From: "Pablo Manalastas" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, January 17, 2002 11:25 AM Subject: Re: [plug] GUI and UP CS
> I am asking you NOT to debug your program on the machine -- instead I am > proposing that you think out out your program, to prove that it is > correct, by whatever means, show that it conforms to its specifications. > Standard practice has shown time and again that debugging (which is > actually program testing with various data sets) is the worst way of > proving correctness. Some parts of the program are never encountered > during debugging, even by the most careful testers. Isn't this the reason > why one of the manned American space missions exploded in mid-air? > Programming history is full of these cases of debugging failures. well i dont really understand what your are talking right now and im confuse... what i understand is that, debugging is to search for and eliminate malfunctioning elements or errors in computer program.... in system analysis and design (usually this is taught in 4th year in computer science course (mandated by DECS?) and im pretty sure you have this subject), there are five phases: 1. analysis phase 2. design phase 3. development phase 4. implementation phase 5. evualation phase debugging (based on the defintion above) belongs to number 3 which is in development phase..... what i understand to your argument is that debugging programming is in the range of number 1 and 2..... well for me i dont consider that debugging programming in that range.... > Radiation was just a lame excuse. That was not really my point. I am > lamenting the fact that today, when a teacher assigns a programming > project, the student immediately goes to the machine, with absolutely > no idea about how the program should go, and then think-and-type. well dont blame it on to the students :-> instead blame it to the teachers! :-> that is what teachers are for, to teach students the correct way! :-> no wonder sacha is complaining about.... <grin> > No brilliant piece of code was ever produced this way. Worse still, > some student just copy their classmates work and then do cosmetic > search-and-replace. that is what we called reverse-engineering.... still part of the educational system.... many professional programmers are doing this... > Let us write a program that > is correct in the first place, so that there is no need to debug it. nahhhh i dont believe in this.... creating a mistake makes a person or a programmer more intelligent... so therefore dont expect a newbie programmer to perfect this kind of philosophy... fooler. _ Philippine Linux Users Group. Web site and archives at http://plug.linux.org.ph To leave: send "unsubscribe" in the body to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe to the Linux Newbies' List: send "subscribe" in the body to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
