[jbb555]

Agree entirely with all this.

You know what you get with C and it just works as you expect always. I always feel refreshed after writing C.

There are perhaps a few very minor enhancements I'd suggest, but I'd be very reluctant to open the floodgates and ruin it.

[zigzigzag]

It always works as you expect? Really?

C is one of the few languages, along with C++, that revels in undefined behaviour. It can be very hard to reliably know what a C program will do if it's not written very carefully because there are so many constructs that look benign but which are technically wrong, and the compiler will mercilessly exploit in order to optimise your program into nonsense.

[deagler]

This, While C and C++ are both very powerful languages and could still be considered the "industry standard"(loosely used) It is definitely not a language that will make your applications work as expected, I would say that C#/Java or higher level scripting languages like Lua or Javascript are languages that will let you make "code it and it works" applications

[kbart]

"It always works as you expect? Really?"

Well, it works as defined in standards. It's just not every programmer knows what to expect. C is simple, yet powerful language and with powers comes responsibility. It's not like you can throw some libraries/modules/objects (or whatever it is in other, safe languages) together, upload to server and call it a day -- static testing, debugging, unit testing is a vital part of any semi serious C project.

[JoeAltmaier]

I hear this, but I've rarely experienced it. Maybe I unconsciously avoid such cases with long use. I started with assembler, and debug C/C++ with disassembly turned on, so maybe that's why.

[ArkyBeagle]

It's just really not that hard to avoid undefined behavior. Really. The worst is arguably integer overflow, and that's not even all that challenging.

[0xfeba]

C++ is far more prone to undefined behaviour and even compilation across systems with the STL.

[tarancato]

Undefined behaviour is not as prevalent in real world code as reading articles from HN might make you think.

[radmuzom]

One of the best things about C is it is not upgraded frequently like other languages. So there are no frequent <language> <x.y> released posts here like we see for other languages.

[creshal]

On the downside, when it does get updated, compilers take ages to implement the new features, and in the meantime make up busywork like "let's break OS kernels or crypto code to get faster in some random benchmark nobody cares about!"

[bkjsbkjdnf]

> You know what you get with C and it just works as you expect always.

Every language works just as you expect if you have the right expectations.