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Ask HN: C# vs. C/C++ as career forward.

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Re: Ask HN: C# vs. C/C++ as career forward.

#21

Post by vardump »

HeyLaughingBoy wrote: post #4

As someone who was described as having "an interesting career path" by his manager due to simultaneously developing Windows device drivers and GUI code, I say learn C#. The availability of device driver writers is shrinking rapidly, as my search for one in the last year proves. However, it's shrinking because the market is shrinking. Might be more accurate to say that the market has already tanked. At the same time,…

C# for Windows device drivers? Huh? How are you even going to handle an ISR (interrupt service routine, IRQ) or a DPC with C#? Or DMA, etc.?

Disclaimer: I've worked with Windows device drivers, and there's no way I can see you could use C# there. Maybe in UMDF, but you certainly can't do anything timing sensitive in user mode. And drivers are often timing sensitive.

Re: Ask HN: C# vs. C/C++ as career forward.

#23

Post by 3am_hackernews »

chrisbennet wrote: post #22

I really love C# but it seems like a poor fit for doing what you really want to do ("get more involved in machine learning, data analytics, scientific computing"). It seems like a detour and not a step toward your goal.

Can you please elaborate?

At this point I am unsure if I should develop my C/C++ chops more or learn C# application development and add something new to the skillset.

Re: Ask HN: C# vs. C/C++ as career forward.

#24

Post by [deleted] »

jarcane wrote: post #12
detrino wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> graduate to F# This is condescending to C# programmers when F# is nearly the same language.

I'd be a lot more willing to get on board with the former part of that sentence if you hadn't blundered into the latter bit. Paul Graham was right again. http://www.paulgraham.com/avg.html

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: C# vs. C/C++ as career forward.

#26

Post by chrisbennet »

3am_hackernews wrote: post #23
chrisbennet wrote: post #22

I really love C# but it seems like a poor fit for doing what you really want to do ("get more involved in machine learning, data analytics, scientific computing"). It seems like a detour and not a step toward your goal.

Can you please elaborate? At this point I am unsure if I should develop my C/C++ chops more or learn C# application development and add something new to the skillset.

I would look on Indeed.com or some other job board for the jobs that fit what you think you would like to do and then look at the what languages and technologies they are asking for.

I've used C# for computer vision, visualization and even for embedded stuff but it really isn't popular for "fun" things and I think it will be even less so in the future.

Re: Ask HN: C# vs. C/C++ as career forward.

#27

Post by rnc »

vonmoltke wrote: post #14
HeyLaughingBoy wrote: post #4

As someone who was described as having "an interesting career path" by his manager due to simultaneously developing Windows device drivers and GUI code, I say learn C#. The availability of device driver writers is shrinking rapidly, as my search for one in the last year proves. However, it's shrinking because the market is shrinking. Might be more accurate to say that the market has already tanked. At the same time,…

> I love C/C++, but it's getting harder to find work in that language unless you want to focus on embedded systems. It's getting harder even if you do want to focus on embedded systems. I see the hiring bars for those positions getting increasingly higher, to the point where it is almost impossible to switch in if you didn't start there or back if you took a break.

Care to elaborate? I'm early in my career(24), love embedded systems, but I just don't know if there are good jobs available in this industry for young people. Could you give more info?

Re: Ask HN: C# vs. C/C++ as career forward.

#28

Post by louthy »

_random_ wrote: post #10
detrino wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> graduate to F# This is condescending to C# programmers when F# is nearly the same language.

It's quite a different and useful language but definitely not a better one. You have to be forgiving, as F# is struggling to get more traction, especially in terms of tooling... No ReSharper, no CodeRush, no Roslyn. But I've heard that F# compiler implementation is quite elegant - that's something, right?

I have never understood this 'No ReSharper,...' argument. I've been writing C# for 10 years and the times I've used ReSharper it's just got in the way and is slow as hell. Effective C# development doesn't require ReSharper. CodeRush? I have literally never heard of it. So again, clearly not essential. No Roslyn? What? No C# compiler? Of course F# doesn't have Roslyn. Until very recently C# developers didn't have Roslyn either and they managed to develop software just fine. So clearly not a deal breaker.

F# is a fine language, and because of its heritage doesn't come with the mistakes that were built into C# because of its C++/Java heritage. 'Better' is clearly subjective. I subjectively find F# better than C#.

The OP is clearly interested in machine learning and the like, which would be much, much, easier in F# than either C# or C++ (not that they can't do it, mind).

Re: Ask HN: C# vs. C/C++ as career forward.

#29

Post by ghuntley »

detrino wrote: post #5
jarcane wrote: post #2

Going forward, 2-3 years, I would really like get more involved in machine learning, data analytics, scientific computing. I would recommend the C# experience in so much as it will build familiarity with .NET, and thus allow you to graduate to F#, which is increasingly popular in those fields (and damn good at them).

> graduate to F# This is condescending to C# programmers when F# is nearly the same language.

3 reasons why the C# type system is broken, and how F# improves the situation @ https://zeckul.wordpress.com/2015/02/05/3-reasons-why-the-c-...
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