But first, learn how to program, which is entirely orthogonal to learning a language to do it in.
This! By golly, that hits the ol' nail right on its head.
When we interview candidates for programming jobs we use physical metaphors, pseudo-code, and/or whatever language the candidate is comfortable brainstorming in. Most of our team has programmed in eleventy-seven different languages over the years anyway, and picking up the ones we use in our products is a matter of a few days for someone who knows how to program.
Reminds me of a job posting I once saw which listed as a requirement having 5-7 years professional experience with a technology that had existed for two years at the time. Ah, the good old days...
To the OP: Yes, you can gradually squeeze your way in to the field using knowledge instead of a degree, but it will probably be faster to just get the degree. While you're getting the degree you can be doing work on the side with your favorite language, so you end up with both a degree AND experience. Both together are far better than either alone. (But I wouldn't bet the farm on Dart, frankly.)
Darn, I didn't realize that Unity was making my Ubuntu suck, even though I don't use Unity. You mean I've been experiencing suckage all this time and didn't even know it?
Wait, can you explain to me how Unity makes my Ubuntu suck when I'm using Xfce? I don't get it.
I don't go in much for pigeonholing myself, but go ahead and pencil me in to the group that thinks only a moron keeps doing something that *might* kill him just because it hasn't been 100% proven yet.
Looking around at the human race, that group appears to be a tiny minority, though.
You are correct. It is in everyone's interest to find reasonable compromises that protect, enable, and encourage the creators of valuable cultural and artistic works.
However, the current mess is a predictable outcome when a new and disruptive technology reduces or eliminates the value added by a segment of an industry that has historically wielded great power and influence, and garnered great wealth due to the necessity or value of that segment.
In simpler terms, some people have been making buttloads of money and will fight tooth and nail to keep the gravy train a-rollin' for as long as possible, even though what they offer no longer matters. Note that in this case those people are NOT the creators, they are the manufacturers and distributors of physical media which are no longer necessary, and the gatekeepers who regulate an artificial scarcity (otherwise known as "anti-competitive practices").
In a generation or so this should all shake out. I just hope that what emerges will continue to protect, enable, and encourage the creators of valuable cultural and artistic works.
Re:Alternatives to Ubuntu
on
Ubuntu Turns 7
·
· Score: 1
I'm currently running Ubuntu 11.04 with Xfce, but downloaded the new Xubuntu iso a couple days ago, planning on installing that as soon as I get a chance to swing by the toy store to buy a shiny new HDD to put it on.
I've been REALLY REALLY happy with the switch to Xfce, which was prompted by trying out Unity in its 11.04 incarnation. So far there is nothing that I miss from Unity OR gnome.
With that said, I'll put in my standard disclaimer that I live in term and emacs and launch applications from the command line more often than not, often using cryptic three letter symlinks that are only meaningful to me, so I'm not really from the same universe as people who like to smear their fingers around on the monitor.
While I'm certainly no fan of Mr. Amadinejad, and concur that he doesn't seem out of place in that list if you view it as a list of "nut-job repressive political leaders", he is very far from being the sort of autocratic dictator-for-life that the others listed are or were. The elections may have been corrupt (as elections often are) but he was more or less elected, faces new elections in the future, and is definitely answerable to others who arguably wield more power, albeit less publicly. Mr. Amadinejad's rants are evidence of his lack of secure permanency. They are often political propaganda aimed at his domestic electorate, which implies that he cares enough about what they think to attempt to distort their perceptions and pander to their prejudices. Sort of like politicians in western democracies do. Actually, exactly like they do.
I was hoping to find some good things to read, but I only found a handful of titles on the list that I don't already own. And most of those I won't.
I was surprised to find some rather - um - lower quality pulp on the list, but I suppose this sort of "everyone vote for your favorite" thing is bound to have a smattering of that.
Oh well. Back to my lists of Hugo and Nebula nominees - that's a much better selection, frankly.
I am interested in Diaspora. Then again, I don't really care that much about web based "social networking". I talk to my family and friends in person, on the phone, and via email and SMS. I'm not looking for a bunch of new casual acquaintances, I already have a date lined up every week (or more) for the rest of my life, and I don't have time to read about other peoples' breakfasts. (What am I doing here on/., then?)
My commuting vehicle also has no air conditioner, seat belt, airbags, computer assisted direction and engine or sophisticated electronic gadget[s]. It is not a living room on wheels, but it is true to its minimalist roots and gets me from A to B reliably.
It also cost me $250 (lightly used) in 1995, and with regular maintenance works as well now as it did then. (Granted, I've probably put an additional $1000 into it over the years replacing worn parts and consumables like tires and lubrication.)
You can still get a new one, too, though the cost has gone up a little, along with the wheel size. It's still a great deal.
Oh, and in my experience it gets approximately 50 miles per cheeseburger.
Yeah, it'll all be ok once we've committed species suicide. The surviving species will be much better off, in fact. And we'll have had some fun in the meantime.
The problem being that people are cutting trees down and releasing their carbon as fast or faster than they replant themselves.
If we can cut down our consumption of trees (pun intended) this will work.
The idea that increased CO2 in the atmosphere will or would result in a corresponding increase in plant growth may have some merit, but the studies I've read (sorry, no links stored in my brain, please cite some pro OR con if you have them) suggest that a significant difference in plant growth would be predicated on a level of CO2 in the atmosphere that might not be conducive to human existence.
So, the problem would sort itself out once the humans are gone.
Of course, the earth doesn't care what its atmospheric content and mean temperature are. We do. Or should.
If you think dime-a-dozen programmers, wherever they might be located, are going to deliver long term profitability, good luck. In my experience you end up spending the same or more on supporting the lower quality product, or fixing it with programmers who cost more, and lose customers (revenue) to competitors who did it right in the first place. The cheap way only costs less up front.
On the other hand, managers/leaders who say things like what you just said are usually not in it for the long term, anyway. Your successor (or theirs) will clean up the mess, or close up the shop, while you are long gone making new messes somewhere else.
My current shop has a healthy mix of experienced, well-trained programmers and junior programmers whom they mentor, both local and overseas, as we're a global operation. We experimented with more of the mix being overseas cheap labor, and found that it was financially worse, because the cost was greater when you factored in the amount of work that had to be redone by people who actually knew the application and the business, and the constant communication and timing problems. Now we have kept some of the good overseas programmers, and are hiring more local programmers, both senior and junior grade.
Translation: "I got a raw deal, so I want to make sure other people also get a raw deal. Also, anyone who claims to want to help other people is a crook, and is just scamming you like I would. Also, babies who chose bad parents deserve to fail."
The fact is, none of us would have anything without a whole system in place that more or less keeps selfish assholes with guns from taking it away for their own use. Operating that system costs effort, whether to earn money to pay for it or to carry out the operations personally. It's a trade-off, and most of the benefits are difficult to measure on an individual scale, but are very real. Most of the "don't redistribute my wealth" complaints I hear and read tend to be very narrow in focus, and fail to account for the system as a whole, without which that wealth and the means to earn it would not exist or be severely reduced. Having a stable, peaceful system with assistance given to the less fortunate to give them a fighting chance results in greater prosperity even for those who foot most of the bill for that assistance. If you want to see a system where you get to keep all you can grab and to hell with everyone else, go visit Somalia, Libertarian Paradise.
Conversely, the system can become too all-encompassing and fail for that reason, too. The assholes with guns can as easily be politicians as street thugs. If you can even tell a difference. Go back in time and watch the Soviet Union fall apart and become a reduced kleptocracy, or alternatively watch as the Chinese system gradually abandons its foundering centrally controlled economy and becomes the world's most powerful economy instead. Maybe. If they can let go enough and find the right balance.
Here in the U.S. we are sliding away from the prosperous center into a corporate feudalism that will leave us less than we once were. European social democracies have slid away from the prosperous center in other directions, and are also diminished.
And there you have it - balance. The required skill for prosperity. Go too far from the middle and you start to fall over. You have to develop a skilled and healthy work force, and you have to leave room for social mobility. You have to account for human nature, which includes acquisitiveness, laziness, altruism, greed, creativity, fear, courage, and a desire to have a TV just 1 cm bigger than the one Bob has. It's a juggling act.
Fairness and Justice are very slippery terms, but average and median material prosperity can be somewhat measured. Alas, very few ideologues want to look that closely at what they have wrought. Cherry picked anecdotes are so much more comforting, you know.
Now, back on topic: The great thing about technology is that if you use it well, it can raise everyone's level of prosperity. Look how far fire and wheels and language have brought us! I look forward to seeing all of the innovations to come in the next few decades, and this research about which we are blithering may contribute to it.
You are driving in a heavy fog. You see a sign that claims the bridge ahead is out. Then a sign that says the bridge is not out. Then another that says it is, and another claiming it's not.
Slashdot Mirror
OK, so answers.com goes on the list of sites I will continue to not use.
But first, learn how to program, which is entirely orthogonal to learning a language to do it in.
This! By golly, that hits the ol' nail right on its head.
When we interview candidates for programming jobs we use physical metaphors, pseudo-code, and/or whatever language the candidate is comfortable brainstorming in. Most of our team has programmed in eleventy-seven different languages over the years anyway, and picking up the ones we use in our products is a matter of a few days for someone who knows how to program.
*guffaw*
Reminds me of a job posting I once saw which listed as a requirement having 5-7 years professional experience with a technology that had existed for two years at the time. Ah, the good old days...
To the OP: Yes, you can gradually squeeze your way in to the field using knowledge instead of a degree, but it will probably be faster to just get the degree. While you're getting the degree you can be doing work on the side with your favorite language, so you end up with both a degree AND experience. Both together are far better than either alone. (But I wouldn't bet the farm on Dart, frankly.)
Darn, I didn't realize that Unity was making my Ubuntu suck, even though I don't use Unity. You mean I've been experiencing suckage all this time and didn't even know it?
Wait, can you explain to me how Unity makes my Ubuntu suck when I'm using Xfce? I don't get it.
I don't go in much for pigeonholing myself, but go ahead and pencil me in to the group that thinks only a moron keeps doing something that *might* kill him just because it hasn't been 100% proven yet.
Looking around at the human race, that group appears to be a tiny minority, though.
What fuel is being used, and how much is readily available?
OK, that made me laugh. Thanks :)
You are correct. It is in everyone's interest to find reasonable compromises that protect, enable, and encourage the creators of valuable cultural and artistic works.
However, the current mess is a predictable outcome when a new and disruptive technology reduces or eliminates the value added by a segment of an industry that has historically wielded great power and influence, and garnered great wealth due to the necessity or value of that segment.
In simpler terms, some people have been making buttloads of money and will fight tooth and nail to keep the gravy train a-rollin' for as long as possible, even though what they offer no longer matters. Note that in this case those people are NOT the creators, they are the manufacturers and distributors of physical media which are no longer necessary, and the gatekeepers who regulate an artificial scarcity (otherwise known as "anti-competitive practices").
In a generation or so this should all shake out. I just hope that what emerges will continue to protect, enable, and encourage the creators of valuable cultural and artistic works.
I'm currently running Ubuntu 11.04 with Xfce, but downloaded the new Xubuntu iso a couple days ago, planning on installing that as soon as I get a chance to swing by the toy store to buy a shiny new HDD to put it on.
I've been REALLY REALLY happy with the switch to Xfce, which was prompted by trying out Unity in its 11.04 incarnation. So far there is nothing that I miss from Unity OR gnome.
With that said, I'll put in my standard disclaimer that I live in term and emacs and launch applications from the command line more often than not, often using cryptic three letter symlinks that are only meaningful to me, so I'm not really from the same universe as people who like to smear their fingers around on the monitor.
While I'm certainly no fan of Mr. Amadinejad, and concur that he doesn't seem out of place in that list if you view it as a list of "nut-job repressive political leaders", he is very far from being the sort of autocratic dictator-for-life that the others listed are or were. The elections may have been corrupt (as elections often are) but he was more or less elected, faces new elections in the future, and is definitely answerable to others who arguably wield more power, albeit less publicly. Mr. Amadinejad's rants are evidence of his lack of secure permanency. They are often political propaganda aimed at his domestic electorate, which implies that he cares enough about what they think to attempt to distort their perceptions and pander to their prejudices. Sort of like politicians in western democracies do. Actually, exactly like they do.
*has a stroke from Godwin overdose*
I was hoping to find some good things to read, but I only found a handful of titles on the list that I don't already own. And most of those I won't.
I was surprised to find some rather - um - lower quality pulp on the list, but I suppose this sort of "everyone vote for your favorite" thing is bound to have a smattering of that.
Oh well. Back to my lists of Hugo and Nebula nominees - that's a much better selection, frankly.
...not to use FB.
Also not using G+.
I am interested in Diaspora. Then again, I don't really care that much about web based "social networking". I talk to my family and friends in person, on the phone, and via email and SMS. I'm not looking for a bunch of new casual acquaintances, I already have a date lined up every week (or more) for the rest of my life, and I don't have time to read about other peoples' breakfasts. (What am I doing here on /., then?)
You are right.
My commuting vehicle also has no air conditioner, seat belt, airbags, computer assisted direction and engine or sophisticated electronic gadget[s]. It is not a living room on wheels, but it is true to its minimalist roots and gets me from A to B reliably.
It also cost me $250 (lightly used) in 1995, and with regular maintenance works as well now as it did then. (Granted, I've probably put an additional $1000 into it over the years replacing worn parts and consumables like tires and lubrication.)
You can still get a new one, too, though the cost has gone up a little, along with the wheel size. It's still a great deal.
Oh, and in my experience it gets approximately 50 miles per cheeseburger.
Yeah, it'll all be ok once we've committed species suicide. The surviving species will be much better off, in fact. And we'll have had some fun in the meantime.
The problem being that people are cutting trees down and releasing their carbon as fast or faster than they replant themselves.
If we can cut down our consumption of trees (pun intended) this will work.
The idea that increased CO2 in the atmosphere will or would result in a corresponding increase in plant growth may have some merit, but the studies I've read (sorry, no links stored in my brain, please cite some pro OR con if you have them) suggest that a significant difference in plant growth would be predicated on a level of CO2 in the atmosphere that might not be conducive to human existence.
So, the problem would sort itself out once the humans are gone.
Of course, the earth doesn't care what its atmospheric content and mean temperature are. We do. Or should.
My kingdom for a mod point!
+1 for creative misuse of the language
Programmer Day wasn't in the requirements. Show me the spec and I'll have it ready next Tuesday.
If you think dime-a-dozen programmers, wherever they might be located, are going to deliver long term profitability, good luck. In my experience you end up spending the same or more on supporting the lower quality product, or fixing it with programmers who cost more, and lose customers (revenue) to competitors who did it right in the first place. The cheap way only costs less up front.
On the other hand, managers/leaders who say things like what you just said are usually not in it for the long term, anyway. Your successor (or theirs) will clean up the mess, or close up the shop, while you are long gone making new messes somewhere else.
My current shop has a healthy mix of experienced, well-trained programmers and junior programmers whom they mentor, both local and overseas, as we're a global operation. We experimented with more of the mix being overseas cheap labor, and found that it was financially worse, because the cost was greater when you factored in the amount of work that had to be redone by people who actually knew the application and the business, and the constant communication and timing problems. Now we have kept some of the good overseas programmers, and are hiring more local programmers, both senior and junior grade.
The paper talks about a computer model of an alloy that hasn't been created and tested yet. It's a tiny piece of a big puzzle.
Translation: "I got a raw deal, so I want to make sure other people also get a raw deal. Also, anyone who claims to want to help other people is a crook, and is just scamming you like I would. Also, babies who chose bad parents deserve to fail."
The fact is, none of us would have anything without a whole system in place that more or less keeps selfish assholes with guns from taking it away for their own use. Operating that system costs effort, whether to earn money to pay for it or to carry out the operations personally. It's a trade-off, and most of the benefits are difficult to measure on an individual scale, but are very real. Most of the "don't redistribute my wealth" complaints I hear and read tend to be very narrow in focus, and fail to account for the system as a whole, without which that wealth and the means to earn it would not exist or be severely reduced. Having a stable, peaceful system with assistance given to the less fortunate to give them a fighting chance results in greater prosperity even for those who foot most of the bill for that assistance. If you want to see a system where you get to keep all you can grab and to hell with everyone else, go visit Somalia, Libertarian Paradise.
Conversely, the system can become too all-encompassing and fail for that reason, too. The assholes with guns can as easily be politicians as street thugs. If you can even tell a difference. Go back in time and watch the Soviet Union fall apart and become a reduced kleptocracy, or alternatively watch as the Chinese system gradually abandons its foundering centrally controlled economy and becomes the world's most powerful economy instead. Maybe. If they can let go enough and find the right balance.
Here in the U.S. we are sliding away from the prosperous center into a corporate feudalism that will leave us less than we once were. European social democracies have slid away from the prosperous center in other directions, and are also diminished.
And there you have it - balance. The required skill for prosperity. Go too far from the middle and you start to fall over. You have to develop a skilled and healthy work force, and you have to leave room for social mobility. You have to account for human nature, which includes acquisitiveness, laziness, altruism, greed, creativity, fear, courage, and a desire to have a TV just 1 cm bigger than the one Bob has. It's a juggling act.
Fairness and Justice are very slippery terms, but average and median material prosperity can be somewhat measured. Alas, very few ideologues want to look that closely at what they have wrought. Cherry picked anecdotes are so much more comforting, you know.
Now, back on topic: The great thing about technology is that if you use it well, it can raise everyone's level of prosperity. Look how far fire and wheels and language have brought us! I look forward to seeing all of the innovations to come in the next few decades, and this research about which we are blithering may contribute to it.
You are driving in a heavy fog. You see a sign that claims the bridge ahead is out. Then a sign that says the bridge is not out. Then another that says it is, and another claiming it's not.
How does a prudent driver proceed?
Those responsible for sacking the people who have just been sacked, have been sacked.
I always pick CowboyNeal
how in the world did the name come about?
http://slashdot.org - read it out loud, and say "slash" and "dot" where you encounter "/" and ".".