it seems the only way to reach satori is to read lots of books I have lying around..I have K&R, Expert C: Deep Secrets, and 2 Perl Oreilly books...would an expert really have to read all these or am I just wasting my time if I dont know it magically :( ...How many programming books do expert programmers usually read in a year or a month?
and I already know what book I'm supposed to be reading..
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Anonymous2007-08-11 22:23 ID:0CUeQqF0
The Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs. Thread over.
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Anonymous2007-08-11 22:31 ID:Tzp5qoSk
Computer Magic!
(>>=) is the most powerful spell I know
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Anonymous2007-08-11 22:50 ID:Qi8NCa4H
I make sure to go to work on a bus or train. Why? So I can spend my time reading books (or take a nap). I average about one technical book a month.
I try to read books that are dramatically different from what I'm familiar with. I'm currently reading a trio of usability books, next will probably be some Haskell, then Programming Erlang, then Refactoring, then Lisp (SICP, Lisp in Small Pieces), then Thinking in Forth, then...
You get the idea. Yes, I have a long way to Satori.
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Anonymous2007-08-11 23:02 ID:5h0+06d0
if you don't read books regularly you will actually become a fucking idiot.
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Anonymous2007-08-11 23:31 ID:sPNBpCuJ
I am probably the most EXPERT programmer on this board, and I never read books.
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Anonymous2007-08-12 0:35 ID:b6/FgqE8
I LISTEN TO INFECTED MUSHROOM WHILE I WRITE JAVA BECAUSE I AM 1337
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Anonymous2007-08-12 0:36 ID:574ptupS
>>4
If you haven't read it, you should add Practical Common Lisp to that list.
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Anonymous2007-08-12 5:03 ID:1N6abVAq
It happens in bursts as required.. I haven't read a technical book in months, and this week I'm probably going to read 5.
Throw in the web and other people's code, and I'm reading all the time.. if you can't read, you don't stand a chance. Good news is if you read all the time you get faster at it.
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Anonymous2007-08-12 7:45 ID:TmVyisop
Tech blogs are the way to go, i've two books on my speciality, but i get far more userful information on the blog rss feeds then them
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Anonymous2007-08-12 7:55 ID:/bb9vLyc
Only morons that don't know how to learn things read books.
Real programmers read manuals and specifications, as well as quick introductory texts.
I don't read books about programming languages I use as much as I concentrate on books about more topical subjects relating to /what/ I'm programming.
Making a game engine? Bone up on graphics theory books, linear algebra texts, and most importantly, that big orange book on collision detection. By the time you're an expert programmer, the language of your choice is second-nature, so instead you just need to educate yourself on the domain of what you're doing.
>>22
At least we could try to force THE SUSSMAN to write a foreword.
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Anonymous2007-08-12 16:55 ID:3sTLQDv+
Mm. Both K&R and Deep C Secrets are good reads, but a bit dated.
I recently read "The Mythical Man-month", purportedly always topical. I especially enjoyed the chapter about pitfalls to avoid when allocating your programmers memory allowances. Truly timeless. :/
I don't think I have ever read a dead-tree book about programming.. and I have no formal education in this field. But I do write code for living and I'm good at it. I doubt that I'm missing much, Internet is a wonderful thing.
>>26
Filled out the Mickey D's application. Presto, a job!
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Anonymous2007-08-13 5:23 ID:4qWB/j5z
>>26
Went to an interview, showed that I can do something (HTML and PHP LOL), agreed to work on minimum wage, repeatedly proved that I'm capable. Now I'm solely responsible for a custom business application with more than 100000 customers, billing, CRMS and all that shit. Earning enough to have a nice living, too.
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Anonymous2007-08-13 5:56 ID:jRMm0eyT
Woman with book is liek... liek horse with... how you say? Wings, yes.
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Anonymous2007-08-13 6:02 ID:v+ikqo02
think about it. no matter how smart you are, it is a way to relearn by yourself what the folks at this field learnt in the past sixty years. thus you must read, unless you want to reinvent the wheel of learning (see >>11)
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Anonymous2007-08-13 6:22 ID:+0U7yLKP
>>33 No matter how smart you are, your paragraph was of substandard quality. Let me try to rephrase your ambiguous babble:
"We must read books or we won't know things that other people have known."
Upon reading this phrase I felt a profound sense of enlightenment.
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Anonymous2007-08-13 6:25 ID:v+ikqo02
>>34
yes. what I said was obvious. nevertheless, some people still don't get it.