I've just started learning Pascal. For the most part the syntax feels redundant or idk how to explain exactly. I'm sure some will get the idea
Now say that fpc is being written from the ground up as a new project, same language features, support etc, but just the syntax is more C-like. Would this bring a positive or a negative results?
I think you would get some weird hybrid, neither fish nor fowl.
Maybe more will start learning it (mainly because it'll be much easier to quickly pick it up for experienced programmers) or at least exploring it. Can it get the attention of big enterprises to maybe adopt it in some way?
As a completely new language it would first have to gain significant traction and a mature toolchain. Dozens of languages are launched weekly, the last one not introduced by a large corporation afaik is Python. (which is from 1991, but started to get traction only after 2000)
Moreover I don't agree with the premise in the first case. C and C syntax is terse and unwieldy to type (too many shifted letters). At first glance it looks shorter, but it is actually longer to type, typically.
Also the language would only the most superficial similarities to C, the kind of info that you get from a 20min reading session, so the benefits are so slim they are not even measurable.
And worse you still face the biggest and steepest hill, not syntax, but getting people from those popular languages to come over to your new minority language. They might grumble about syntax, but they'll just grumble on something else and stick with what they know.
So in short: IMHO hopeless
can it find the popularity that it truly deserves, because imo, I've just started learning it and so far I'm so impressed especially because it was built by the community. I really appreciate the tools and support FPC/Lazarus provides completely *FREE*. Nothing asked.
The big problem is that with a new language you throw away 50 years of source code and tooling and start over, and that for a vague principle that is hard to test and saves 10-20 minutes in the earliest part of the language learning.
What do you think? Is that even technically possible?
You would have to rewrite the entire parser, and redesign the whole dialect. Possible, but not trivial.
But the FPC project wouldn't be interested, so you would have to fork, create an own team, and do the work. An experienced couple devel could maybe redo the frontend to a somewhat workable state in an year. Maybe half an year if there are multiple persons that can work as a team, and assuming they are still students or in their first jobs so they can really spend a lot of time on it.
For unwashed newbies: hard to say. But long, very long.
But even then you only have the compilre, and you are years away from being on par, you have to redo IDE,xml,json classes *EVERYTHING* and the kitchen sink:-)
Most likely some members lose steam or start to diverge in direction *HARD*.
In other words, what do you think is the main reason for FPC/Lazarus not getting the attention it deserves?
Looking at existing languages introduced or made popular in the last 10-15 years (Rust, Go, Ruby etc), that's obvious. Not being invented or introduced by a large US corporation. Not being entrenched in a small circle of Silicon Valley venture capitalists at the right moment.
So in short: to fix the problem, give your mates the url to a ten finger typing course.