Re: [Lit.] Buffer overruns

From: David Wagner (daw_at_taverner.cs.berkeley.edu)
Date: 01/31/05 

Date: Sun, 30 Jan 2005 23:42:31 +0000 (UTC)

Douglas A. Gwyn wrote:
>"My way" is to implement the kind of system
>development discipline about which a great
>number of books have been available for quite
>some time.

That's not a very helpful answer, you know. It is one of those
answers that are so vague that they are almost impossible to evaluate.
When you go to examine one of the claims, if you manage to refute it,
the response is just to say "oh, that wasn't what I meant". Why is it
so hard to pin you down on this? Why is it so hard to extract concrete
details out of you? If I sound frustrated, it's because I am.

And just think about how you are going to show the rest of the programmers
of the world how to use "your way", if you show me. I badly want to find
better answers for this problem. I'm probably more motivated to try new
approaches to the buffer overrun problem, and more willing to slog through
piles of useless crap to find just one useful insight, than 95% of the
world's practicing programmers. If you can't provide enough details for
someone who is very motivated to learn your way, how are you going to
provide enough details for the programmers of the world to learn your way?

Maybe you don't have the time or energy to teach others this stuff.
If so, I'll understand and sympathize. But in that case, please don't
stand in the way of those who do have the time and energy to make some
kind of positive contribution, even if that contribution isn't anywhere
near as positive as yours would be if you had the time and energy for it.

>If you are truly unaware of any
>of these, then probably the one that would
>most quickly repay a modest investment of
>your time is De Marco's "Structured Analysis
>and Systems Specification".

I'll add that book to my reading list. I've got high hopes, given the
source of the recommendation. Thanks.

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