A Reader Bleakly Asks About the Future of C++ within Microsoft

A reader writes

Sender: Brian Braatz

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I posted the following to the boost email group and receieved the following response. I was wondering if you had any comments or thoughts on this. I am personally concerned that MS will eventually ditch C++ or take away my ability to use ALL the features of the C++ lanuaguage (not now, but I feel it is coming.. someday I will have C# or VB.net as my only "choice" on the ms platforms)

 

There is no question that the original Managed Extensions for C++ was a severe body blow to the credibility of a viable future for C++ on the Microsoft platform. In fact, when I originally interviewed here, I said pretty much the same thing as Brian to the folks here, and it felt, anyway, that I spent much of the first half year here battling people’s perceptions that the managed exceptions while not perfect were pretty much ok. In some ways, the original release infuriated me; and that made me a less effective force for change than I might have been. It was clear to me from the outset that we had to either radically reengage our C++.NET vision or else pack up our tent and become a historical curiosity to an increasingly dynamic programming environment – something I would characterize as a tragically hopeful monster. Eventually, the whole department became mobilized; although it wasn’t until Herb Sutter took a leading role that we turned the corner, in my opinion. And I believe we have. The problem now is overturning nearly two years of being the .NET whipping boy and getting people to take us seriously – well, not us but the language, which is now called C++/CLI, and is both an ongoing ECMA standard and in liaison with the new ISO-C++ committee work. I personally guarantee that anyone that feels passionate about C++ will be both delighted by and engaged with the C++/CLI language that will be shipped with Visual Studio 2005, and should be available as a first peek in an upcoming Beta program. (I’ll engage more on the details in subsequent blogs – really J)