Don't get overly invested in just one or two languages. You don't want to just be "another journeyman C++ programmer" in 5 years but you want to be someone who can solve problems and get results with a computer in any language.
In other words need to know the basic concepts of scripting, procedural programming, object oriented programming and functional programming and be able to learn the new models for the 21st century. You need to know about data structures, interface design, etc. But the tools you use can, and should, change over time.
When I started programming over 40 years ago Pascal, Assembler (on mainframes), CLISTS, jCL and modular programming were the newest things. I was constantly learning new languages over the years. Often they were very specific to a given device or environment and unlike anything I had studied before. You need to think about what it is you want to get by studying a language.
If you just want to learn new skills, now I would recommend a functional language like OCAML. On the other hand, if your objective is just to make money and have job security learn ABAP/4 for SAP.
But in either case, expect to learn something new tomorrow. If you have the fundamental concepts down you'll easily adapt and find each successive language comes easier; if not you'll get dead ended and have a career writing the same program over and over.
If you learn the fundamental skills and concepts then you should be able to pick up any language in a short time. The more flexibility you have the better.
In addition to the obvious, there is a more insidious second order effect that professional social engineers (madison avenue, politicians, con artists, etc.) will have the feedback to really fine tune their approach. It will be a focus group of 100% accuracy.
Wikipedia can be an excellent source of information. It is typically much more current than other sources and had great introductory articles on many technical subjects. The links it has can often lead to further research. The page history can provide insight into underlying controversy.
Clearly, Wikipedia is not perfect: it can be gamed, like Stephen's Colbert's drive to increase the number of elephants in Africa; is subject to fanatic bias; and what's the popular conception isn't necessarily the truth.
Instead students should learn to question everything, parse the logical structures, and not rely on single source for information. In this way Wikipedia can be an excellent teaching tool.
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A deck of cards, only $2 or $3 to buy, offers hundreds of hours of play. Plus, if you win at Poker it's an income source!
Don't get overly invested in just one or two languages. You don't want to just be "another journeyman C++ programmer" in 5 years but you want to be someone who can solve problems and get results with a computer in any language.
In other words need to know the basic concepts of scripting, procedural programming, object oriented programming and functional programming and be able to learn the new models for the 21st century. You need to know about data structures, interface design, etc. But the tools you use can, and should, change over time.
When I started programming over 40 years ago Pascal, Assembler (on mainframes), CLISTS, jCL and modular programming were the newest things. I was constantly learning new languages over the years. Often they were very specific to a given device or environment and unlike anything I had studied before. You need to think about what it is you want to get by studying a language.
If you just want to learn new skills, now I would recommend a functional language like OCAML. On the other hand, if your objective is just to make money and have job security learn ABAP/4 for SAP.
But in either case, expect to learn something new tomorrow. If you have the fundamental concepts down you'll easily adapt and find each successive language comes easier; if not you'll get dead ended and have a career writing the same program over and over.
If you learn the fundamental skills and concepts then you should be able to pick up any language in a short time. The more flexibility you have the better.
Isn't this the same as playing songs on the radio leads to more music sales?
In addition to the obvious, there is a more insidious second order effect that professional social engineers (madison avenue, politicians, con artists, etc.) will have the feedback to really fine tune their approach. It will be a focus group of 100% accuracy.
No - they shouldn't block Wikipedia.= http%3A//www.textbookreviews.org/California_announ cement.html%3Fshownews and http://school.familyeducation.com/education-and-st ate/history/38673.html or do you believe that Daniel Boone was in the Continental Congress and that Sputnik was a nuclear warhead?)
Instead students should be taught critical thinking skills and how to be skeptical of any information.
Textbooks are full of errors (see http://amasci.com/miscon/miscon.html, http://www.textbookreviews.org/index.html?content
Wikipedia can be an excellent source of information. It is typically much more current than other sources and had great introductory articles on many technical subjects. The links it has can often lead to further research. The page history can provide insight into underlying controversy.
Clearly, Wikipedia is not perfect: it can be gamed, like Stephen's Colbert's drive to increase the number of elephants in Africa; is subject to fanatic bias; and what's the popular conception isn't necessarily the truth.
Instead students should learn to question everything, parse the logical structures, and not rely on single source for information. In this way Wikipedia can be an excellent teaching tool.