[eesmith]

K&R write:

> It has been closely associated with the UNIX system, since it was developed on that system, and since UNIX and its software are written in C. The language, however, is not tied to any one operating system or machine; and although it has been called a “system programming language” because it is useful for writing operating systems, it has been used equally well to write major numerical, text processing, and data-base programs.

https://archive.org/details/TheCProgrammingLanguageFirstEdit...

[BoorishBears]

So it sounds like they're endorsing that concept, and just don't want it to be a limiting term in terms of what people expect in regards to portability and scope?

"System level" does that just fine right? There's not much confusion about if C is tied to Unix anymore after all...

[eesmith]

I really don't understand the aim of your inquiry.

Yes, I see it called a systems programming language.

But unlike you, I see people call it low-level. The easiest counter-example was to point to K&R, which was my textbook in college. (Yes, pre-ANSI). And there are many people who still say that, as I found in a quick Google Scholar search:

] Although the Java platform has been used as a multi-language platform, most of the low-level languages (such as C, Fortran, and C++) - (2016) https://dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1145/2998415.2998416?casa_toke...

] Lifting these restrictions is primar-ily motivated by our desire to target low-level languages, such as C with pthreads - (2011) https://dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1145/1929553.1929558?casa_toke...

] Use-after-free vulnerabilities have plagued software written in low-level languages, such as C and C++, - (2020) https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?arnumber=9152661...

Now that you've seen people call it low-level, you can't truthfully write a comment like you did at https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29710906 .

[BoorishBears]

No, I can and I will, and it will still be truthful.

Because to most people with a firm understanding of the nature of English my statement means:

"When I, in current times not 40 years ago, hear people talk about C, they most often refer to it as a systems level language".

-

Of course, I forget this is HN and there are some people who think that it means:

I have never seen "C" and "low level" on the same line of text!

For these unfortunate cases, there is a belief that 40 year old K&R references (...) and some hastily assembled search results will change my reality... but that's a separate issue I'm not interested in.

Those people are definitely free to consider me a liar, the world will keep spinning for the rest of us.

[eesmith]

I don't like responding to anecdotes with anecdotes, so rather than reply with a (IMO pointless) "what?! I hear people talk about C as a low-level language far more often than I hear them talk about it as a systems language", I prefer to give something more substantial.

Restricting my hastily assembled search to HN, I easily find comments from within the last few months referring to C as a low-level language ... and yes, as a systems language too.

HN is a casual setting with newer programmers.