Lesson 0: Computers are Dumb

OK Class. Settle Down! It is time for your first assignment.

This lessons simple: Read the Introduction and reflect on my notes below.

Notes:

• Computers are slaves
  • This might be the most important thing you learn in order to convert you from a normal person to a programmer. Computers can only do what they are told and only exactly what they are told. You will often here people complain about thier computer acting us or some program taking action on its own, but this cannot be the case. Computers are our dedicated but not very creative slaves.
• What computers can do
  • Not only are computers slaves, but they are not very bright. We may use computers in amazing ways to solve amazing problems. However this is only because most of our problems can be broken down into very basic problems. Nearly all a computer can do is move information from one part of the computer to an other, a little math, and a little basic logic. Everything beyond these three categories is build from them.
• Flame war
  • I think Pine makes a good point about Java vs Ruby, but i don’t know why it is included in the introduction of a book for novices. Ignore it; it can only be used to indoctrinate you and make you a fan boy.
• Lazy but Agile
  • You are learning to program at an amazing time. The industry has learned not only how to solve problems using computers, but to solve problems with humans doing the coding. You may thin this seems like an obvious part of the work, but it has taken some time to break through the image of a code monkey and to show that the most important skills a good programer has are not coding skills. One of these important skills is being lazy. If you cultivate your laziness you will not waste our time working on solving the same problem over and over again and when you want (or need) to make a change to a program it will be easy and you will have the time to do it.
  • This ability to make change quickly but reliably is part of a methodology sweeping though the industry right now called “Agile”.

Questions:

I don’t have any for you, but make sure you send some my way. There are no dumb questions and they help me make a better course. The also let me know you are paying attention.

OK, the next lesson is here