Comments on: On the fundamentals of programming http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/ Mon, 30 Jan 2012 11:57:11 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 By: Semwenda Samson AC http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-3269 Semwenda Samson AC Sat, 20 Jun 2009 06:04:16 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-3269 thanx very much for the basic foundation, m a second year college student i was dreaming to be ajournalist but when i wakeup! i found ma self in the computer schoolk when programming is my favourity, bt i dnt knw where to start. can i plz get the answers on the following - what is the first this to do if i want be a programmer - the very basic notes for the begginers like me which language is good for the begginers to understand faster and which is good and marketable thanx alot thanx very much for the basic foundation, m a second year college student i was dreaming to be ajournalist but when i wakeup! i found ma self in the computer schoolk when programming is my favourity, bt i dnt knw where to start.
can i plz get the answers on the following

- what is the first this to do if i want be a programmer
- the very basic notes for the begginers like me
which language is good for the begginers to understand faster and which is good and marketable
thanx alot

]]> By: ashaju taiwo http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-3038 ashaju taiwo Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:12:39 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-3038 please can you give me a self guide introduction to programming and what i ought to know before i starts writing a series of program. secondly, what types of program do we have. please can you give me a self guide introduction to programming and what i ought to know before i starts writing a series of program. secondly, what types of program do we have.

]]> By: ashaju taiwo http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-3037 ashaju taiwo Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:00:20 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-3037 please can you give me a self guide introduction to programming please can you give me a self guide introduction to programming

]]> By: sehar http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-2462 sehar Thu, 26 Jun 2008 07:52:39 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-2462 i cannot understand how to make program in programming fundamentals i cannot understand how to make program in programming fundamentals

]]> By: oluwayemisi oguntayo http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-2148 oluwayemisi oguntayo Wed, 02 Apr 2008 10:38:21 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-2148 i need a mentor to gide me through my it studying and i cant find one . please help. i dont mean hackers bt a mentor 10ks i need a mentor to gide me through my it studying and i cant find one . please help. i dont mean hackers bt a mentor 10ks

]]> By: allan http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-1881 allan Fri, 21 Mar 2008 12:06:05 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-1881 it's so beautiful i almost had tears in my eyes.. haha.. i kid.. i don't cry.. but really, it hits the point.. thanks for the guide.. i will now spend the rest of my teenage days in front of a terminal studying the essence of what you said.. or something almost like that.. i have a life anyway.. xD it’s so beautiful i almost had tears in my eyes..
haha.. i kid.. i don’t cry..

but really, it hits the point..

thanks for the guide.. i will now spend the rest of my teenage days in front of a terminal studying the essence of what you said.. or something almost like that.. i have a life anyway.. xD

]]> By: Vida http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-1388 Vida Tue, 11 Mar 2008 15:59:20 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-1388 good material thanks good material thanks

]]> By: » The best security essay of 2007 | IT Security | TechRepublic.com http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-256 » The best security essay of 2007 | IT Security | TechRepublic.com Tue, 01 Jan 2008 04:13:19 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-256 [...] It is a late entry to the running for 2007, published on a personal weblog on the 14th of December. The author, Ben Orenstein, is a software developer, and the essay is titled On the fundamentals of programming. [...] [...] It is a late entry to the running for 2007, published on a personal weblog on the 14th of December. The author, Ben Orenstein, is a software developer, and the essay is titled On the fundamentals of programming. [...]

]]> By: spot http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-198 spot Fri, 21 Dec 2007 22:33:14 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-198 The very very very best place to start, the Bible of the fundamentals, is Donald Knuth's The Art of Computer Programming. Starts with the *useful* part of computer science, which is just describing how the abstract machine "works." Then goes from top to bottom presenting problems to solve, from the "did you read any of this" sort of simpletons to extremely advanced mathematics, some problems that have not yet even been solved but are essentially in the domain of computing, some that have been solved since he wrote it. I enjoyed reading this very much. The same issues of fundamentals go for project management as well. While it can and has been done, it's just too painful to try to design an algorithm by hashing it out in code (heh) -- get the design worked out, then start coding. In this sense, every programmer should be their own project manager. As for mentoring, I think it is a unique problem. I've been programming for 25 years, from about the time that the commodore was kicking and being kicked around. I taught myself -- there was no one else. But unlike volleyball, you can step back from coding, watch your call stack, and see for yourself where your short hops are. And you get better that way. So there are thousands of guys just like me. But we had the advantage that the technology was so infantile compared to today's gargantuan code stacks. You used whatever computer came your way first, and you started writing conditional loops. These days though, the fundamentals really are obscured by all the adornments we've made with all those decades worth of conditional loop routines. So maybe we have to reach out and mentor, even though we all started out as socially isolated geekoids...hmmm...I dunno I'm still pretty antisocial. I think I'll give that kid a link to Knuth's book and a pat on the head. He'll be outcoding me in no time.... The very very very best place to start, the Bible of the fundamentals, is Donald Knuth’s The Art of Computer Programming. Starts with the *useful* part of computer science, which is just describing how the abstract machine “works.” Then goes from top to bottom presenting problems to solve, from the “did you read any of this” sort of simpletons to extremely advanced mathematics, some problems that have not yet even been solved but are essentially in the domain of computing, some that have been solved since he wrote it.

I enjoyed reading this very much. The same issues of fundamentals go for project management as well. While it can and has been done, it’s just too painful to try to design an algorithm by hashing it out in code (heh) — get the design worked out, then start coding. In this sense, every programmer should be their own project manager.

As for mentoring, I think it is a unique problem. I’ve been programming for 25 years, from about the time that the commodore was kicking and being kicked around. I taught myself — there was no one else. But unlike volleyball, you can step back from coding, watch your call stack, and see for yourself where your short hops are. And you get better that way. So there are thousands of guys just like me. But we had the advantage that the technology was so infantile compared to today’s gargantuan code stacks. You used whatever computer came your way first, and you started writing conditional loops.

These days though, the fundamentals really are obscured by all the adornments we’ve made with all those decades worth of conditional loop routines. So maybe we have to reach out and mentor, even though we all started out as socially isolated geekoids…hmmm…I dunno I’m still pretty antisocial. I think I’ll give that kid a link to Knuth’s book and a pat on the head. He’ll be outcoding me in no time….

]]> By: ValRe http://codeulate.com/2007/12/on-the-fundamentals-of-programming/comment-page-1/#comment-191 ValRe Fri, 21 Dec 2007 21:00:50 +0000 http://codeulate.com/?p=4#comment-191 Oh, this is so true! I learned several different languages through higher education, but after I earned my degree, I couldn't make anything *useful*. I could "Hello, world!" and add A + B, haha. It was several years before I found someone who gave me the jumpstart I needed. Now I just need to find someone for the next level up... Oh, this is so true! I learned several different languages through higher education, but after I earned my degree, I couldn’t make anything *useful*. I could “Hello, world!” and add A + B, haha. It was several years before I found someone who gave me the jumpstart I needed. Now I just need to find someone for the next level up…

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