Oldie but Goodie - Joe Armstrong on "Why OO Sucks"

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From an old post by Joe Armstrong (of erlang fame).  A lot of it is controversial - to say the least :-) - but I love the closing

Why OO was popular?

  • Reason 1 - It was thought to be easy to learn.
  • Reason 2 - It was thought to make code reuse easier.
  • Reason 3 - It was hyped.
  • Reason 4 - It created a new software industry.
I see no evidence of 1 and 2. Reasons (3 and 4) seem to be the driving force behind the technology. If a language technology is so bad that it creates a new industry to solve problems of its own making then it must be a good idea for the guys who want to make money.
This is is the real driving force behind OOPs.
Note:  On a semi-serious note, I got through the Ye Gods, Do I ever hate <XXX> phase about twice a year, where <XXX> is Java / C / C++.  Curiously, its never happened yet for erlang / perl.

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