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Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

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Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#31

Post by s3r3nity »

vblord wrote: post #18

My son has done many Minecraft programming courses. He even did a Minecraft programming summer camp. If it wasn't with Minecraft, he wouldn't have done it. I think bringing Minecraft in to the schools to teach development is the right move. I wish all schools would embrace that. It would get the kids excited to learn... unlike... well... everything else besides gym, lunch, and recess. From programming aspect, Minecra…

My brother had a similar experience, albeit probably outside the target demo.

When he was ~15/16, he hit a point where his grades fell hard in high school, and was very close to dropping out. I noticed he was big into Call of Duty games, and suggested that he pick up Minecraft again and try their programming classes -- naively assuming that if you like games you might like most genres. A few years later he was so engaged that he applied to college for a computer science degree.

The shit was so inspiring that I bought a Surface Pro 4 just to support Microsoft (even if I just wanted an excuse to buy one haha)

Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#32

Post by tomgp »

inputcoffee wrote: post #2

Has anyone here programmed minecraft? Can you report to the rest of us how the following compare as learning experiences: 1. Minecraft 2. Swift Playground 3. Commodore 64 or other old basic 4. Game Salad, or Game Maker, 5. Just learning Javascript in the browser I know #2 is my favorite experience, but I think #5 is the most useful now. Just wondering if anyone has played around with minecraft to compare. If I had to…

We have Minecraft on our Raspbery Pi connected to our TV, you can write Python code to add/ remove blocks etc. My 5-year-old is happy to open and run these scripts, my 7-year-old will customise simple functions I've written or write them along side me, she understands why and how they work. This is pretty much the level of coding I was doing back when I was their age on our families ZX Spectrum. But importantly the results are MUCH more compelling e.g. make a 10x10x10 cube of TNT blocks centred 20 blocks underground and then detonate them.

Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#33

Post by afarrell »

na85 wrote: post #29
Haul4ss wrote: post #5

When Apple makes an iPad app to teach kids a programming language useful only in the Apple ecosystem, they're promoting STEM education. When Microsoft leverages a massively popular game to promote STEM education, they're weaponizing.

Look, I hate Apple as much as the next guy, but I don't get the sudden benevolence for Microsoft that's cropped up in the last few years. Microsoft has a well-known history of user-hostile and downright unethical behaviour, notwithstanding this latest bit of spyware they call Windows 10.

A lot of it has to do with:

1) Their increasing quantity of open source contributions

2) The rejection of the FSF's philosophy

Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#34

Post by tehwalrus »

mikepavone wrote: post #12
csharp wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

These are all sales numbers, not market share.

Sales numbers are market share. Installed base is probably the term you're looking for.

numbers of devices, not numbers of dollars, is the distinction being made here I think.

Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#35

Post by HelloMcFly »

rocky1138 wrote: post #30
thesimpsons1022 wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

and why do you want to fight it?

Embrace, extend, extinguish: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embrace%2C_extend_and_extingui...

Sorry, maybe I'm dense: what exactly are you afraid of being extinguished here?

Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#36

Post by qwertyuiop924 »

Weaponize? That's just wrong. Minecraft, retroactively dubbed Minecraft Java Edition, is totally cross platform. So, how does this new product help MS dominate education?

Answer: it doesn't. It's like arguing that Bröderbund (I hope I spelled that right) weaponized Zoombinis to take over the education market.

Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#37

Post by alexbeloi »

afarrell wrote: post #33
na85 wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Look, I hate Apple as much as the next guy, but I don't get the sudden benevolence for Microsoft that's cropped up in the last few years. Microsoft has a well-known history of user-hostile and downright unethical behaviour, notwithstanding this latest bit of spyware they call Windows 10.

A lot of it has to do with: 1) Their increasing quantity of open source contributions 2) The rejection of the FSF's philosophy

Could you clarify who is rejecting FSF's philosophy? Apple? HN community? Microsoft?

Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#38

Post by riffraff »

douche wrote: post #25
vvanders wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly. Microsoft has always offered educational versions of Visual Studio at discounted/zero cost. I clearly remember getting a student copy of Visual Basic(VS6.0!) for ~$50. I built all sorts of stupid things with that and while it definitely biased me in favor of Microsoft tools you know what else it did? Helped me into a rich and diverse career in a wide array of technologies and stacks. Anything that helps brid…

It used to be called DreamSpark, and it was awesome when I was in college - particularly since in those days, the Express, single-language free versions of VS hadn't come out quite yet, and the community edition was yet to be a twinkle in someone's eye. It looks like they give away many Azure services now as well ( https://catalog.imagine.microsoft.com/en-us )

I used the equivalent about 15 years ago and you could get windows, office, visual studio and a bunch of other stuff. Good deal.

Re: Microsoft is using Minecraft to vie for kids’ brain space and schools’ dollars

#40

Post by helthanatos »

UnoriginalGuy wrote: post #10
Haul4ss wrote: post #5

When Apple makes an iPad app to teach kids a programming language useful only in the Apple ecosystem, they're promoting STEM education. When Microsoft leverages a massively popular game to promote STEM education, they're weaponizing.

Yep. And the article doesn't even contain any specific allegations, it is just a clickbait term without meaning. I'll cheer for anyone (Apple, Microsoft, Google, et al) who promote STEM and come up with novel ways to utilise software in education (including interactive games).

I would prefer everyone to contribute to education out of a kindness rather than wanting money for it. If companies looked towards the future, more might survive. Being known as someone that just wants money or gets money from tax money causes a hostility. Being known as benevolent instead of evil would be a great thing for any company (excluding hidden and niche companies).
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