A programmer's complaint

As a programmer, there is nothing I hate more than change. To me, change means that things do not work any more. Little matter what exactly changes. Operating system changes screw up the language. The language does not work with the operating system when it changes. If the users' requirements change things go not work the way you would like any more, which amounts to the same thing.

Rather than have your code develop, you have to decide whether to let old programs go or torture yourself with lessons in comparative syntax between language versions for language revisions, or reading the tea leaves trying to divine changes in user needs. I now program mostly in Java, so the operating system problems are secondary thanks to the Java Virtual Machine being fitted to individual operating systems. Unless you would have to retrofit new Java to old operating systems. That could be nasty. Hey, you have to draw the line somewhere man!