[heydowns]

Our programming team students chose C++ primarily because:

1. The returning students have C background from previous years.
2. Our mentors were more versed in C/C++.
3. The students saw C/C++ as a more widely applicable language/environment to learn be familiar with -- they saw utility for it in a wider range of post-educational fields.
4. The students liked that they could edit C/C++ code without need for a specialized environment (to do Labview well, you need Labview - you can edit C/C++ with something as simple as a text editor).

We made our choice back in September to allow time for pre-season training. We've been working with Windriver since the pre-ship in late November and so far, our team seems to be happy with the C++ choice.