I think C an C++ became more or less universal programming language(s), just like English in human communications.
One can express OO or algorithmic sketch quickly - and it will be understood everywhere, universally.

Widely used for education, huge existing code base of legacy products, native support by virtually any OS. Rhaphsody and Mathlab use C/C++ for code generation, embedded, IOT devices and uCs- also natively support them.
Flexible for many styles and practices. Standards for syntax and libraries.
Good balance between flexibility and robustness.

That's why.

Personally (means - narrowminded) I think of three groups by the application and level of abstraction:

1. OS-oriented apps, low level HW abstractions or models - make it C/C++;

2. Business applications, DB, distributed, OO, high lebel abstraction - Java

3. Web/DB applications, simplified abstractions, MVC - PHP and JS family.

Cheers, Andrzej


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On August 8, 2024 16:51:53 Hendrik Boom <hendrik@???> wrote:

> On Thu, Aug 08, 2024 at 09:35:50AM -0500, o1bigtenor via Dng wrote:
>> On Thu, Aug 8, 2024 at 8:52 AM Dan Purgert via Dng <dng@???>
>> wrote:
>>
>> > On Aug 08, 2024, David Billsbrough wrote:
>> > > Hello Dan and all,
>> > >
>> > > Quoting somebody on this mail list:
>> > >
>> > > > If you're trying to start up a new hobby, and expect to be using these
>> > > > tools every weekend; well, you're going to need that set of $40 tools
>> > > > when the $5 set breaks / ruins something / whatever. Might as well
>> > > > spend the $40 today instead of $5 today and $40 anyway in 2 months.
>> > >
>> > > [...] Tool prices, etc. comments. [...]
>> > > SO anyways ...
>> > >
>> > > In the virtual (digital) world this **idea** does' NOT also work the
>> > > same way at all.
>> > >
>> > > You can use FREE (beer or speech) software that meets and exceeds some
>> > > or most *TOP* dollar software offerings. Well because that just the
>> > > way that it is!
>> >
>> > You completely misunderstood the analogy I'm making...
>> >
>> > Scenario: OP is fighting with Python a bit in order to use MicroPython
>> > (or a variant thereto) to program a microcontroller.
>> >
>> > I'm telling him that *IF* he's trying to do this as more than a
>> > "one-off", he might as well learn C/C++ (via Arduino) now, rather than
>> > waiting on it.
>> >
>> > Python = "Cheap tool" (It'll get the job done, if all you need is this
>> > one thing)
>> >
>> > C/C++ = "Expensive tool" (It'll "hurt the wallet", but you'll have it
>> > forever).
>> >
>> > I wasn't going to bite but you keep insisting so:
>>
>> Why is C/C++ so absolutely wonderful?
>
> Primarily because C (not C++) has been around for a longer time
> than most other tools. Old enough that it was around when Linux got
> written and it has become the interlingua for Linux software.
>
> Not because it's a great language.
>
> It was a breath of fresh air in the 1970's, but by now language
> technology has advanced a lot since then.
>
> Still, to interface with anything at the level of C, you need
> something that will work at that level, be it C or some other
> systems language. I would have been happy if Modula 3 had
> caught on the way C did, but it didn't.
>
> -- hendrik
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