I remember that: “Green is ADA”
In the 2nd phase, green was beating us. Biggest problem for us - lack of integrity. Each part was lovely but they didn’t fit together. Our main designer returned from Germany just in time to take over the final phase. Seeing the problem, he threw out red and created RED. THAT had integrity. The problem was that it took the whole phase to finish. By the end of the phase, the language was exquisite. AND we had a compiler to prove it. But everyone was writing books about and course syllabi about Green. So no one was paying attention to us. They’d get on a plane intending to vote Green, read us FINALLY and change their vote to Red. And then we got to the voting place. Oh, and Green couldn’t get a compiler going so they convinced the judges to throw the compiler part out of consideration. But the AF had decided on Green and it had to be unanimous. So they sent a lieutenant. The man knew nothing about the languages, was instructed to vote for Green, and instructed not discuss the matter. The man from DCA was physically shaking in his seat. But unanimous it had to be and it was Green. Jean stood on stage and said the language was the same and it had changed massively. He was right. He’d left the syntax the same and changed the underlying semantics. Our company was paid for a year to fix Jean’s mistakes.
http://www.iment.com/maida/computer/redref/index.htm
After the contest, I started Ada LETTERS and the AdaTEC organization. I was chair of Programming Languages and pulled AdaTEC into that organization eventually. I was also the consultant to Time/Life’s Programming Languages book and the best thing I think I’ve done with my life was spend the time telling them about Bill Whitaker, who came up with the idea and thought everyone would forget him. When the book came out I called him and read him all the sections about him and told him that now he’d never be forgotten. I remember a medal he had on his chest (AF) that he explained was for the calculations done so that when you dropped a nuclear bomb, you could get the plane the heck out of there. Absolutely lovely man.