The vast, VAST majority of people just aren't cut out to be programmers. I would estimate that 95% of the programming students I worked with in college had no business in that major. They were just in it for the career, and it showed in their AWFUL work. When I was young, I tried to help them out, but soon stopped doing it. I very quickly got tired of students who clearly had no business being programmers wanting me (who did) to do their work for them. The worst were the girls who thought that they could pull the flirting shit on me to get me to do their homework (as if I was so naive as to not have learned that lesson by high school, much less college).
Subsequently, as I moved up in the world, I occasionally get a friend who wants me to talk to their kid/nephew/student about being a programmer. Inevitably, this is some kid who enjoys playing video games and hasn't the first fucking clue about programming. It usually takes about five seconds of me talking to them for them to realize that *programming* games has absolutely no relation to *playing* games, at which point I can go home and stop wasting my time. I then tell my friend that their kid has no future as a programmer, and should consider a career as a carnival barker instead. Usually these days I just skip the whole talking to them part and tell my friend that his kid is a moron right up front. Saves us both a lot of time.
In short, a kid with a real future in programming wouldn't NEED help. They would already be teaching themselves and planning their own path. They sure as shit wouldn't need some *proxy* to ask me to talk to them. They would already be seeking out knowledge ON THEIR OWN, David Lightman style.
To put it in an even shorter form: If you have to ask if you would make a good programmer, the answer is "No."
Seriously, was there anyone out there in their right mind who thought inhaling diesel fumes (any *any* sort of petrochemical fumes, for that matter) WASN'T bad for you? Okay the cancer thing may be a new twist, but was there really anyone out there arguing for *more* diesel fumes for their workers?
With Slashdot's new "Flag comment as inappropriate" feature
That would leave about 10% of the comments left on any given thread. And even those will only still be there because the moderator is too fucking stupid to appreciate irony.
Wow, it took *four whole posts* for a PC snob to let us all know that his control scheme is *so* much better than any dirty controller used by us unwashed masses, thereby proving that his dick is, in fact, the longest?
Yeah, I saw a bunch of freed people in front of the unemployment office just the other day. Thought about stopping to tell them how lucky they are, but they looked kind of angry.
The study posts that, once small and medium business can use cloud products to just eliminate their IT department, they'll use those savings to hire people for their core business.
Or they'll just put it towards profits and big bonuses for the CEO and senior staff, creating no jobs at all.
Mr. Taco, we understand that you know a lot about this Twitter/Internet/Facebooks stuff. We would like to be hip with that vibe. You'll be in charge of helping our geriatric writing staff learn to do the twitters. You'll also be in charge of producing press releases with lots of hip jargon for the kids. But mostly you'll be in charge of bailing water out of the lower decks. It's starting to get pretty deep down there.
If you think you can handle that, please report to your new office and write up some press release about how you're going to change the face of the tired old Washington Post into something the kids will want to read--something with a cool new name like "WoPo" with a bunch of exclamation points after it, maybe some asterisks in there too--you be the judge on that. And more importantly, try to get the kids to give us their money and twits too. "Twits," that's what they're called right? Use a lot of that net jargon we're told you're down with. Then fax it over to Wired. We want to get this out before they run the presses.
Oh, and hire my grandson. He's lazy as dirt, but he knows a bunch of strange words and phrases that I think will help us still appear relevant.
What happened to that Canada I remember, huh? The country to took in draft dodgers during Vietnam? The country that instituted universal healthcare? The country where "liberal" wasn't an insult? The country that wasn't afraid to zig when the U.S. zagged?
The Mythbusters showed that years ago. It was actually quite shocking how similar the test results were between someone who was substantially drunk and someone just talking on the phone (got even worse when they were texting).
It's called the Placebo Effect. And it works equally well whether you're praying to Mohammad, praying to Jesus, or even if you just think you're getting some new, effective treatment (which could just consist of sugar pills). It's not indicative that some demigod somewhere is helping you heal, only that your attitude can have a huge impact on your recovery.
Far better any of the practitioners teaching these courses, I suspect. And certainly more honest.
Are they certified in it?
I'm not sure how someone becomes certified in "homeopathy," "faith healing," etc. But the thought does conjure up some amusing images.
They are tricksters and fraudsters. They think everyone else must be like them.
They have debunked many frauds, it's true. But they do accept that many of the true believers really do believe in whatever bunk they're selling. What they DO NOT accept is that this belief makes the bunk any more credible.
Conducting a course which would debunk the very subject it is about is way too controversial for most universities. No way would they have the guts to be so politically-incorrect as to suggest that some religious-based faith healing was so much humbug, lest they bring down the wrath of the various interest groups who actually believe in this stuff. I suspect the "professors" who teach these courses are probably true believers/practitioners who may, at best, give cursory lip-service to any idea that they are a mere placebo.
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The vast, VAST majority of people just aren't cut out to be programmers. I would estimate that 95% of the programming students I worked with in college had no business in that major. They were just in it for the career, and it showed in their AWFUL work. When I was young, I tried to help them out, but soon stopped doing it. I very quickly got tired of students who clearly had no business being programmers wanting me (who did) to do their work for them. The worst were the girls who thought that they could pull the flirting shit on me to get me to do their homework (as if I was so naive as to not have learned that lesson by high school, much less college).
Subsequently, as I moved up in the world, I occasionally get a friend who wants me to talk to their kid/nephew/student about being a programmer. Inevitably, this is some kid who enjoys playing video games and hasn't the first fucking clue about programming. It usually takes about five seconds of me talking to them for them to realize that *programming* games has absolutely no relation to *playing* games, at which point I can go home and stop wasting my time. I then tell my friend that their kid has no future as a programmer, and should consider a career as a carnival barker instead. Usually these days I just skip the whole talking to them part and tell my friend that his kid is a moron right up front. Saves us both a lot of time.
In short, a kid with a real future in programming wouldn't NEED help. They would already be teaching themselves and planning their own path. They sure as shit wouldn't need some *proxy* to ask me to talk to them. They would already be seeking out knowledge ON THEIR OWN, David Lightman style.
To put it in an even shorter form: If you have to ask if you would make a good programmer, the answer is "No."
At what point does criminality become patriotism?
When you win and get to write the history.
George Washington was a British traitor right up to the point when the British surrendered. Afterward, he was a American patriot hero.
Fear-mongering is hardly anything new. Politicians have been using it since the dawn of civilization.
Seriously, was there anyone out there in their right mind who thought inhaling diesel fumes (any *any* sort of petrochemical fumes, for that matter) WASN'T bad for you? Okay the cancer thing may be a new twist, but was there really anyone out there arguing for *more* diesel fumes for their workers?
With Slashdot's new "Flag comment as inappropriate" feature
That would leave about 10% of the comments left on any given thread. And even those will only still be there because the moderator is too fucking stupid to appreciate irony.
would I ever want to leave my home if I had the option not to?
With a generous benefactor paying all your bills, why would you ever need to?
Wow, it took *four whole posts* for a PC snob to let us all know that his control scheme is *so* much better than any dirty controller used by us unwashed masses, thereby proving that his dick is, in fact, the longest?
Yeah, I saw a bunch of freed people in front of the unemployment office just the other day. Thought about stopping to tell them how lucky they are, but they looked kind of angry.
Yeah, but think of all the free time you'll have when you don't have to go to work every day.
The study posts that, once small and medium business can use cloud products to just eliminate their IT department, they'll use those savings to hire people for their core business.
Or they'll just put it towards profits and big bonuses for the CEO and senior staff, creating no jobs at all.
Mom, I've asked you to stop harassing me on the internet.
I'm pretty sure there is no competition there.
He'll bring lame Natalie Portman memes to the masses!
fix their online presence first
Do you realize how many lines of Cobol they would have to fix, man?!?
Some prick in a turtleneck will swoop and and steal all the credit?
He's building synergy. It's a paradigm shift.
Maybe he can get WaPo Labs to fix it.
Could be worse. They could have hired kdawson.
Mr. Taco, we understand that you know a lot about this Twitter/Internet/Facebooks stuff. We would like to be hip with that vibe. You'll be in charge of helping our geriatric writing staff learn to do the twitters. You'll also be in charge of producing press releases with lots of hip jargon for the kids. But mostly you'll be in charge of bailing water out of the lower decks. It's starting to get pretty deep down there.
If you think you can handle that, please report to your new office and write up some press release about how you're going to change the face of the tired old Washington Post into something the kids will want to read--something with a cool new name like "WoPo" with a bunch of exclamation points after it, maybe some asterisks in there too--you be the judge on that. And more importantly, try to get the kids to give us their money and twits too. "Twits," that's what they're called right? Use a lot of that net jargon we're told you're down with. Then fax it over to Wired. We want to get this out before they run the presses.
Oh, and hire my grandson. He's lazy as dirt, but he knows a bunch of strange words and phrases that I think will help us still appear relevant.
What happened to that Canada I remember, huh? The country to took in draft dodgers during Vietnam? The country that instituted universal healthcare? The country where "liberal" wasn't an insult? The country that wasn't afraid to zig when the U.S. zagged?
You've changed, man.
The Mythbusters showed that years ago. It was actually quite shocking how similar the test results were between someone who was substantially drunk and someone just talking on the phone (got even worse when they were texting).
What's the scientific explanation?
It's called the Placebo Effect. And it works equally well whether you're praying to Mohammad, praying to Jesus, or even if you just think you're getting some new, effective treatment (which could just consist of sugar pills). It's not indicative that some demigod somewhere is helping you heal, only that your attitude can have a huge impact on your recovery.
What are their qualifications?
Far better any of the practitioners teaching these courses, I suspect. And certainly more honest.
Are they certified in it?
I'm not sure how someone becomes certified in "homeopathy," "faith healing," etc. But the thought does conjure up some amusing images.
They are tricksters and fraudsters. They think everyone else must be like them.
They have debunked many frauds, it's true. But they do accept that many of the true believers really do believe in whatever bunk they're selling. What they DO NOT accept is that this belief makes the bunk any more credible.
Just because science has not discovered something does not mean it doesn't exist.
Every time I hear that argument, I respond with "Science hasn't proven that unicorns don't exist. But that doesn't offer ANY evidence that they DO."
Conducting a course which would debunk the very subject it is about is way too controversial for most universities. No way would they have the guts to be so politically-incorrect as to suggest that some religious-based faith healing was so much humbug, lest they bring down the wrath of the various interest groups who actually believe in this stuff. I suspect the "professors" who teach these courses are probably true believers/practitioners who may, at best, give cursory lip-service to any idea that they are a mere placebo.