C Must Die

Overview of the importance and history of the C programming language, its development, and its significance for operating system development.

Discussion on the simplicity and ruthlessness of the C language with respect to errors, and its role in operating system kernel and software development.

Explanation of how the C language was developed by Ken Thompson and Dennis Ritchie for pdp1 computers, leading to the creation of the UNIX operating system kernel.

Description of the evolution of the C language, its porting challenges, performance optimizations, and compiler dependencies.

Overview of the first language standard in 1989 (C89), the concept of high-level and low-level languages, and adherence to language standards to avoid undefined behavior.

Explanation of strict aliasing in C, its impact on optimization, potential vulnerabilities, and the debate over standards compliance and optimization trade-offs.

Discussion on undefined behavior in C, its consequences, challenges in standard interpretation, and the controversy surrounding signed overflow and optimization practices.

Reflection on the state of the C language, challenges faced by developers, the debate over optimization, standards compliance, and the call for the retirement of the C language.

Discussion on the C language and its potential for productivity and growth compared to newer languages like Zig, Rust, and Go.

Exploration of new languages that avoid undefined behaviors and provide defined parameters for increased productivity and learning from past mistakes.

Highlighting Zig as a promising language for embedded systems due to its efficiency and potential to replace existing technologies.

Addressing issues with C language, including problems with units of measurement and historical discussions on language flaws.

Reflecting on personal experiences with programming in C language, particularly in embedded systems and robotics, and the enjoyment derived from it.

Examining the evolution of processors and programming languages over the past decade, emphasizing the need for new languages built on past lessons learned from legacy languages like C.

Discussion on the security aspects of programming languages, with C being perceived as less secure but still valuable for skilled programmers.

Expressing a preference for using beginner-friendly programming languages that provide immediate feedback on incorrect behaviors to enhance safety and efficiency.

Using a humorous analogy to depict the safety and strictness of Rust programming compared to other languages, highlighting its unique characteristics.