[geeks] New Tech Schools: Digital Harbor in Baltimore

[Charles Shannon Hendrix]

On Fri, 13 Apr 2007 12:38:02 -0400 (EDT)
der Mouse <mouse at Rodents.Montreal.QC.CA> wrote:

> >> I'd say that's a defensible point of view, but only if you consider
> >> programming to include designing the software as well as coding it.
> > You don't?
> 
> Not inherently, no.  (*Good* programming, though, does.

Ah, I rarely add positives.  Mostly I'm only specific when I'm talking about
the negative, like "bad programming".

What good does it do us to talk about how to create bad programmers?

Even an unskilled programmer is better than a bad programmer, as long as they
try hard and know their limits (and keep learning).

> >> Actually, some of the people who confuse CS with those other
> >> disciplines are schools that purport to teach CS, meaning that
> >> sometimes, you can study what the school calls CS and actually end
> >> up getting programming or software design (or, rarely, sysadmin).
> > Personally I don't see how you could teach software design without
> > teaching real computer science, but I do know what you mean.
> 
> Yes...except that you don't need very much of the theory to be a
> competent engineer.  For example, you need to know *that* you can't
> sort faster than N log N, but you don't necessarily need to know *why*.

Well, maybe.

But my experience is this: those that don't know why seem to do a really bad
job of making basic choices and it is hard to explain it to them.

I also know because I didn't get everything I needed, and until I did learn
the theory one way or another, I didn't do as well either.  Some things I
have never gotten, I still struggle with.

I'm not saying this is universal, but at least I have some direct experience
in addition to observation.









-- 
shannon           | That which is overdesigned, too highly specific,
                  | anticipates outcome; the anticipation of outcome
                  | garantees, if not failure, the absence of grace. 
                  |        -- William Gibson, All Tomorrow's Parties