Learn to read. This is the second time I had to note this for you. I said Fortran was one of the best. And I said, "No way I'd use Python for serious large data set numerical calculations." That's obviously a personal preference. I never said Python was bad at it. I really wish more/.'rs could read.
But then I have to install F2Py if it's even available. Look at the systems I might be using: an older Burroughs or Honeywell used for numeric calculations? CDC? Not every engineer has a pc with Python running on it. Fortran is available and installed in most engineering operations already.
I really just meant from Fortran 90 like the previous poster. 95 is really pretty minor in changes. 2003, yeah, big changes. How many systems are likely to have 2003 on them? I can usually find a Fortran 90 compiler freely available for lots of platforms, and lots of the companies I know that use it use 90 or 95 because they had it already for their older legacy hardware. Specifically, I prefer Gnu and its current production release (4.30) really isn't 2003 compliant yet. http://gcc.gnu.org/onlinedocs/gcc-4.3.0/gfortran/Standards.html#Standards
Granted. But it's still easier to write simple, basic Fortran code to solve a quick engineering problem and to use/incorporate some of the nice math libraries. If you're really good, you can wrap it all in C and includes to bring in Fortran libs, but why bother for an undergrad's first course? The student only has 16 weeks to learn the basics, while taking other classes. There is always opportunity for more advanced coursework. Plus, Fortran is readily available on lots of systems, new and old. Even C isn't available on every system in every organization where a new engineer could be employed. So start with the basics, and then advance.
I believe I stated that it was still "one of the best, fastest, most optimized" languages. I did not say in any way that it was "the best" but I did imply that it was a good one. I offered that as a response to the OP OP.
If you want citations, find your own. I only offer this one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Python_(programming_language) - note that Python is considered primarily a scripting language even by today's wiki authors. If you have an issue with that, correct wiki.
There are plenty of newer languages with better features. C and C++ are both in the same category, although you can argue that it's a bit more complicated to write your first C program than your first Fortran program if you're new to programming. C++ offers a few more challenges. Remember that we're talking about engineers here and not computer scientists. They don't all arrive at college with programming backgrounds.
How new does the book need to be for the language standard when it hasn't changed much in 2 decades? It's a simple, easy to use tool for serious engineering.
Fortran is still one of the best, fastest, most optimized tools for number crunching. It's also very easy to write simple programs in it. No way I'd use Python for serious large data set numerical calculations.
all the CB (citizen's band) radio operators of the 70's that built or acquired linear amps and bumped their power up from the legal maximum of 10W to more than 100W. Many homes got invaded without warrants in those years. Most amplifiers made were cheap, and bled over into other frequency ranges, even at the IF level. I know of one CBer with a huge amp that the local church asked not to transmit on Sunday morning. His signal was so strong that 2 blocks away, it overdrove the church's PA system, and in the middle of the sermon the congregation would hear his transmissions at tremendous volume. "Yeah, meet you at the choke-n-puke good buddy!"
I've been in the tech business for 30 years. I can tell you this much - you're obviously going to get a lot of conflicting discussion here, but keep in mind that's because each of the respondents has different job goals.
Generally the master's pays off in the long run. It can get you an additional $20k/year initial salary, but it's more common to see around $5-10k. So you may or may not see an ROI in the first couple of years out of school, and that's a goal you'll have to consider. But you will see an ROI if all other things are equal, and it will make a bigger difference in your future, everything else being equal.
More importantly, it opens doors. Many jobs at the supervisory level require or highly prefer a post-grad degree. This does vary by region, so doubtless you'll get arguments to this. Public sector, such as government jobs (NASA, state and federal jobs, military civil service, and public sector colleges, for example) typically require master's degrees for higher level positions. Notice I said "typically." Some require Ph.D.s.
So the question is more one of what do you want to do with your life? If you'd like to be in management some day, you better your chances with higher degree. It's much easier to get the degree while you're still in the college routine, and it's much harder to fit it in later in life. I got mine right after my bachelor's and my wife got hers 20 years afterwards, even though we were in college together. It took me 1.5 years to complete, and it took her 5 years. Evening and weekend classes, much tougher when you have a job and kids. Plus, read back articles in/. and you will see that your brain develops and learns faster while you're still young.
Finally, getting the advanced degree will teach you things you won't learn quickly in the career field. I've had lots of young grads come to me with wonderful new things they had developed, which were really nothing new. How new can round-robin process scheduling be? I have to hand them a book and a reading assignment to show them that they're 40 years behind the times.
that a 747 pilot would fly less than 200 yards from your building in a crowded city? Remember they're big. Looks can be deceiving. He was probably a 1/4 mile away. And he wouldn't have been going at "full speed" or he'd never have been able to pull the turn you described. I remember the days when we lived for this kind of event.
Sorry, haven't been on lately. I don't know about the other submitter, but this is current information: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123914805204099085.html And watch for more. (If the information is let out into the public.) Note the article specifically states that the majority of these penetrations were NOT discovered by the company managing the infrastructure, but rather by intelligence services. In other words, the utility provider employees like you are perhaps unaware. If you want evidence, you'll have to find some on your own. My only point is that there have been a lot of breakins, and the utility companies aren't all the same in implementing standards like NERC in consistent fashions. Everyone interprets regulatory standards a little differently, hence variations in methods/technologies for addressing the standards.
Obviously it's a shadowy world and the public at large isn't going to get to see all the information gathered:
"Authorities investigating the intrusions have found software tools left behind that could be used to destroy infrastructure components, the senior intelligence official said. He added, "If we go to war with them, they will try to turn them on."
I think this article is evidence that I do know what I'm talking about, regardless of your insulting response. You don't know anything about me or what I do or have done, but you were quick to judge. Now I ask, what do you really know about what's going on in your own industry if you aren't aware of these kinds of things?
We can't trust the private sector to spend money to actively protect these same systems, and they are key to our survival. There have already been hundreds of successful attacks on these systems throughout the nation. Each utility does their own thing, which means differing levels of protection, if any, across like utilities within the same state or region.
Controlling potable water is critical. There needs to be similar security on flood control systems. The Army Corps of Engineers, Civil Works side of the house, manages flood control throughout the country with specialized data centers. It's already tough enough to do that job well with Mother Nature throwing constant change-ups. Can you imagine what might happen if someone took over those systems and created disasters?
Water and energy sources can't be taken too lightly. If someone malicious shuts down power, you lose critical services, such as heating, cooking, and the ability to read Slashd
In my job, I am supporting both versions, RedHat and "Oracle." I get better support from RedHat. It's enough better that I have gotten away with converting several of the "Oracle" servers over to RedHat. There are still a few, but a few less every year.
Don't tell them that. Remember you're talking to slashdotters and WoW players. They need their fantasies. Brag about how wonderful your view is all over Europe. "I saw 5 absolutely perfect D-sets at lunch today." They'll be so excited they won't even be able to key in replies for hours.
Here in the states, idiots don't attempt to link video games to knife crimes at all. I suspect if handguns were outlawed in the US, we wouldn't have issues with video games at all.
On a serious note, though, these clowns are going to link anything they can to video games.
Some states, Illinois among them, require that an employer provide copies of a personnel file or any materials within to the employee, for up to one year following termination, upon employee request.
If I were you, I'd go straight to HR and ask for a full copy of your personnel file. They already know you're leaving, they should have no problem with it. There is no federal legislation, so you'll have to check your state laws. I would put the request in writing, indicating that the request is in compliance with whatever statute you can quote. Don't make it a big letter, just a short note.
Be sure to: ask for your *complete* file, including evaluations, promotions, and any other documentation they have; quote the applicable statute and paragraph; ask for the copies to be provided within 5 working days; date and sign the letter; keep a signed copy.
If you don't get a copy within a week, send a registered letter before you leave, referencing the original, and keep copies of it. If you don't have a copy within a couple of weeks, you'll probably have to talk to a lawyer and show him your records.
Most courts would find that 5 days turnaround to make a copy of a file is more than adequate.
Disclaimor: IANAL....
In the employee break room of a local grocery store, they have a prominent announcement on their bulletin board, very large lettering, which reads in effect that all employees should remember there are other people out there that need jobs.
Oops, dawned on me that's just his surname, so I googled his whole name (Mr. Whoopass) and got 951,000 hits. This link is proof that we have access to much of his personal information, including links to his girlfriend, WhiteTrash. http://people.paltalk.com/people/users/Mr%20WhoopAss/index.wmt
Slashdot Mirror
Learn to read. This is the second time I had to note this for you. I said Fortran was one of the best. And I said, "No way I'd use Python for serious large data set numerical calculations." That's obviously a personal preference. I never said Python was bad at it. I really wish more /.'rs could read.
But then I have to install F2Py if it's even available. Look at the systems I might be using: an older Burroughs or Honeywell used for numeric calculations? CDC? Not every engineer has a pc with Python running on it. Fortran is available and installed in most engineering operations already.
I really just meant from Fortran 90 like the previous poster. 95 is really pretty minor in changes. 2003, yeah, big changes. How many systems are likely to have 2003 on them? I can usually find a Fortran 90 compiler freely available for lots of platforms, and lots of the companies I know that use it use 90 or 95 because they had it already for their older legacy hardware. Specifically, I prefer Gnu and its current production release (4.30) really isn't 2003 compliant yet. http://gcc.gnu.org/onlinedocs/gcc-4.3.0/gfortran/Standards.html#Standards
Granted. But it's still easier to write simple, basic Fortran code to solve a quick engineering problem and to use/incorporate some of the nice math libraries. If you're really good, you can wrap it all in C and includes to bring in Fortran libs, but why bother for an undergrad's first course? The student only has 16 weeks to learn the basics, while taking other classes. There is always opportunity for more advanced coursework. Plus, Fortran is readily available on lots of systems, new and old. Even C isn't available on every system in every organization where a new engineer could be employed. So start with the basics, and then advance.
I believe I stated that it was still "one of the best, fastest, most optimized" languages. I did not say in any way that it was "the best" but I did imply that it was a good one. I offered that as a response to the OP OP.
If you want citations, find your own. I only offer this one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Python_(programming_language) - note that Python is considered primarily a scripting language even by today's wiki authors. If you have an issue with that, correct wiki.
There are plenty of newer languages with better features. C and C++ are both in the same category, although you can argue that it's a bit more complicated to write your first C program than your first Fortran program if you're new to programming. C++ offers a few more challenges. Remember that we're talking about engineers here and not computer scientists. They don't all arrive at college with programming backgrounds.
Specious argument given the readability and additional expertise required to manipulate registers and stacks in Assembly.
google Fortran tutorial download
How new does the book need to be for the language standard when it hasn't changed much in 2 decades? It's a simple, easy to use tool for serious engineering.
Fortran is still one of the best, fastest, most optimized tools for number crunching. It's also very easy to write simple programs in it. No way I'd use Python for serious large data set numerical calculations.
When I'm unable to get to the network for some reason, I feel extra stupid as a developer.
Odd. Just the opposite for me. When I'm able to get to the network, I usually have a slashdot window open, and I feel my IQ drop.
all the CB (citizen's band) radio operators of the 70's that built or acquired linear amps and bumped their power up from the legal maximum of 10W to more than 100W. Many homes got invaded without warrants in those years. Most amplifiers made were cheap, and bled over into other frequency ranges, even at the IF level. I know of one CBer with a huge amp that the local church asked not to transmit on Sunday morning. His signal was so strong that 2 blocks away, it overdrove the church's PA system, and in the middle of the sermon the congregation would hear his transmissions at tremendous volume. "Yeah, meet you at the choke-n-puke good buddy!"
I've been in the tech business for 30 years. I can tell you this much - you're obviously going to get a lot of conflicting discussion here, but keep in mind that's because each of the respondents has different job goals.
/. and you will see that your brain develops and learns faster while you're still young.
Generally the master's pays off in the long run. It can get you an additional $20k/year initial salary, but it's more common to see around $5-10k. So you may or may not see an ROI in the first couple of years out of school, and that's a goal you'll have to consider. But you will see an ROI if all other things are equal, and it will make a bigger difference in your future, everything else being equal.
More importantly, it opens doors. Many jobs at the supervisory level require or highly prefer a post-grad degree. This does vary by region, so doubtless you'll get arguments to this. Public sector, such as government jobs (NASA, state and federal jobs, military civil service, and public sector colleges, for example) typically require master's degrees for higher level positions. Notice I said "typically." Some require Ph.D.s.
So the question is more one of what do you want to do with your life? If you'd like to be in management some day, you better your chances with higher degree. It's much easier to get the degree while you're still in the college routine, and it's much harder to fit it in later in life. I got mine right after my bachelor's and my wife got hers 20 years afterwards, even though we were in college together. It took me 1.5 years to complete, and it took her 5 years. Evening and weekend classes, much tougher when you have a job and kids. Plus, read back articles in
Finally, getting the advanced degree will teach you things you won't learn quickly in the career field. I've had lots of young grads come to me with wonderful new things they had developed, which were really nothing new. How new can round-robin process scheduling be? I have to hand them a book and a reading assignment to show them that they're 40 years behind the times.
that a 747 pilot would fly less than 200 yards from your building in a crowded city? Remember they're big. Looks can be deceiving. He was probably a 1/4 mile away. And he wouldn't have been going at "full speed" or he'd never have been able to pull the turn you described. I remember the days when we lived for this kind of event.
the Air Force notified the NYPD and the Mayor's office in advance, which is standard procedure. And maybe New Yorkers should stay away from air shows.
Sorry, haven't been on lately. I don't know about the other submitter, but this is current information: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123914805204099085.html And watch for more. (If the information is let out into the public.) Note the article specifically states that the majority of these penetrations were NOT discovered by the company managing the infrastructure, but rather by intelligence services. In other words, the utility provider employees like you are perhaps unaware. If you want evidence, you'll have to find some on your own. My only point is that there have been a lot of breakins, and the utility companies aren't all the same in implementing standards like NERC in consistent fashions. Everyone interprets regulatory standards a little differently, hence variations in methods/technologies for addressing the standards.
Obviously it's a shadowy world and the public at large isn't going to get to see all the information gathered: "Authorities investigating the intrusions have found software tools left behind that could be used to destroy infrastructure components, the senior intelligence official said. He added, "If we go to war with them, they will try to turn them on."
I think this article is evidence that I do know what I'm talking about, regardless of your insulting response. You don't know anything about me or what I do or have done, but you were quick to judge. Now I ask, what do you really know about what's going on in your own industry if you aren't aware of these kinds of things?
I accept your apology. 'nuff said.
We can't trust the private sector to spend money to actively protect these same systems, and they are key to our survival. There have already been hundreds of successful attacks on these systems throughout the nation. Each utility does their own thing, which means differing levels of protection, if any, across like utilities within the same state or region.
Controlling potable water is critical. There needs to be similar security on flood control systems. The Army Corps of Engineers, Civil Works side of the house, manages flood control throughout the country with specialized data centers. It's already tough enough to do that job well with Mother Nature throwing constant change-ups. Can you imagine what might happen if someone took over those systems and created disasters?
Water and energy sources can't be taken too lightly. If someone malicious shuts down power, you lose critical services, such as heating, cooking, and the ability to read Slashd
In my job, I am supporting both versions, RedHat and "Oracle." I get better support from RedHat. It's enough better that I have gotten away with converting several of the "Oracle" servers over to RedHat. There are still a few, but a few less every year.
On second thought and better yet, tell the the European version of WoW has naked female characters, no bikinis.
Don't tell them that. Remember you're talking to slashdotters and WoW players. They need their fantasies. Brag about how wonderful your view is all over Europe. "I saw 5 absolutely perfect D-sets at lunch today." They'll be so excited they won't even be able to key in replies for hours.
Sure you can. When you resurrect, instead of leaving a skeleton on the ground where you died, it's now a police chalk outline.
Here in the states, idiots don't attempt to link video games to knife crimes at all. I suspect if handguns were outlawed in the US, we wouldn't have issues with video games at all. On a serious note, though, these clowns are going to link anything they can to video games.
"We don' need no steenkin' access logs!"
Some states, Illinois among them, require that an employer provide copies of a personnel file or any materials within to the employee, for up to one year following termination, upon employee request. If I were you, I'd go straight to HR and ask for a full copy of your personnel file. They already know you're leaving, they should have no problem with it. There is no federal legislation, so you'll have to check your state laws. I would put the request in writing, indicating that the request is in compliance with whatever statute you can quote. Don't make it a big letter, just a short note. Be sure to: ask for your *complete* file, including evaluations, promotions, and any other documentation they have; quote the applicable statute and paragraph; ask for the copies to be provided within 5 working days; date and sign the letter; keep a signed copy. If you don't get a copy within a week, send a registered letter before you leave, referencing the original, and keep copies of it. If you don't have a copy within a couple of weeks, you'll probably have to talk to a lawyer and show him your records. Most courts would find that 5 days turnaround to make a copy of a file is more than adequate. Disclaimor: IANAL....
In the employee break room of a local grocery store, they have a prominent announcement on their bulletin board, very large lettering, which reads in effect that all employees should remember there are other people out there that need jobs.
I am underimpressed with the owners.
Oops, dawned on me that's just his surname, so I googled his whole name (Mr. Whoopass) and got 951,000 hits. This link is proof that we have access to much of his personal information, including links to his girlfriend, WhiteTrash. http://people.paltalk.com/people/users/Mr%20WhoopAss/index.wmt
He thinks he's smart, hiding from us, but I googled Whoopass and found 1,180,000 hits.