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Teach Yourself Computer Science

teachyourselfcs.com

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Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#41

Post by M5x7wI3CmbEem10 »

29athrowaway wrote: post #3

I like Algorithms by Robert Sedgewick. It's a great book. He also has free online courses based on the books that are of excellent quality: - https://www.coursera.org/learn/algorithms-part1 - https://www.coursera.org/learn/algorithms-part2 There's a website for the book as well, that has code that is well organized and commented. Unfortunately excellent books like "Programming Pearls" have code examples that use weir…

I’ve heard that Part 1 of the algorithms course is sufficient for new grad interviews. Can you verify?

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#42

Post by M5x7wI3CmbEem10 »

miguelrochefort wrote: post #7

As a 30 year old software developer who's now considering going back to school for the next 3-4 years to get a degree, I wonder if I should blame these kinds of resources for making me believe that I could learn everything on my own and that a degree was unnecessary. Having learned this material in school would have made my life so much easier... For context, I recently received a lot of pressure to get a degree, des…

was a Bachelor’s in a quantitative subject not sufficient?

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#43

Post by miguelrochefort »

throwawaygh wrote: post #13
miguelrochefort wrote: post #7

As a 30 year old software developer who's now considering going back to school for the next 3-4 years to get a degree, I wonder if I should blame these kinds of resources for making me believe that I could learn everything on my own and that a degree was unnecessary. Having learned this material in school would have made my life so much easier... For context, I recently received a lot of pressure to get a degree, des…

> despite years of experience and good knowledge of CS fundamentals Have you considered majoring in something other than CS? If you're adequately self-taught and need the degree, then might as well learn something new and useful.

I have considered the idea, but I don't know if the additional effort would be worth the possibly marginal benefits.

I've considered biology and law because they seem to pair well with software. Perhaps smaller niches would be even better.

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#44

Post by pretzell »

seven4 wrote: post #12

Whenever i have someone ask me where to get started on CS - i give them a few options tiered to try and ensure some stickiness/higher utility for them specifically. ~Some Existing Touch Point With CS Teachyourselfcs.com is definitely in the conversation - in general I recommend it to friends who have a pre-existing "gateway" to the field (software engineer or otherwise). The page talks about progressing from "type 2"…

I strongly recommend OSSU! Both books and MOOCs have their place, and sometimes a MOOC is easier to stay motivated, provided a schedule, and exercises of appropriate number and difficulty.

I really like reading books too, but sometimes the completion-ist part of me is too strong and I shouldn't really do all the exercises.

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#45

Post by stormdennis »

bigasscoffee wrote: post #30
jgwil2 wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You could certainly try to start learning to code with SICP and go from there, but for the most part these resources will be much more valuable to those who have some prior background in programming.

SICP sounds like a big waste of time when you can follow another guide in a language like Python and make applications along the way.

Yeah! Yeah! I'd say your onto something here buddy!

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#46

Post by miguelrochefort »

M5x7wI3CmbEem10 wrote: post #40
miguelrochefort wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The pressure comes from everywhere: - Current employer: "Your salary is already good for someone without a bachelor's degree" - Current employer: "We're sorry but this promotion requires a bachelor's degree" - Future employer: "We're sorry but we hired someone with a bachelor's degree for this job" - Date: "You don't have a bachelor's degree?" - Friends: "You're the only one without a bachelor's degree" - Meetup: "Wh…

does similar pressure exist for a Master’s Degree? I’ve considered OMSCS for this reason.

Ask me after I get my bachelor's degree.

I suspect the pressure never really goes away.

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#47

Post by voz_ »

M5x7wI3CmbEem10 wrote: post #37

how much of this curriculum is necessary for a FAANG job? I’d love to go through all of them, but I’m constrained with work as well, so I’ll have to prioritize.

Pretty necessary, I cant imagine working at a FAANG without at least having read and understood "Designing Data-Intensive Applications" cover to cover.

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#48

Post by hugey010 »

thewarrior wrote: post #29
alexashka wrote: post #26

> If you’re a self-taught engineer or bootcamp grad, you owe it to yourself to learn computer science. No, you don't. I know all these topics and I don't recommend anyone working in a corporate environment to learn any of this. It'll likely result in you resenting your job, your peers and the entire software industry. --- I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vex…

What does it say about our industry if learning all this makes workers hate what they do ? By this logic we should cut down on advanced education so people stay content in dull jobs.

Isn't reduced education a method for keeping people content in most situations?

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#49

Post by ApolloRising »

rhc2104 wrote: post #9
miguelrochefort wrote: post #7

As a 30 year old software developer who's now considering going back to school for the next 3-4 years to get a degree, I wonder if I should blame these kinds of resources for making me believe that I could learn everything on my own and that a degree was unnecessary. Having learned this material in school would have made my life so much easier... For context, I recently received a lot of pressure to get a degree, des…

Perhaps Western Governors University could be a good fit. https://www.wgu.edu/online-it-degrees/computer-science.html The philosophy of WGU is that you pass self-paced courses by passing tests, so people that already know the material can complete the courses quickly.

Are they a respected degree in CS?

Re: Teach Yourself Computer Science

#50

Post by scarface74 »

miguelrochefort wrote: post #35
wincy wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where is the pressure coming from? Your employer? I’d guess it varies widely between companies.

The pressure comes from everywhere: - Current employer: "Your salary is already good for someone without a bachelor's degree" - Current employer: "We're sorry but this promotion requires a bachelor's degree" - Future employer: "We're sorry but we hired someone with a bachelor's degree for this job" - Date: "You don't have a bachelor's degree?" - Friends: "You're the only one without a bachelor's degree" - Meetup: "Wh…

I have a hard time believing that an employer ever cared about my degree in CS from 24 years ago from a no name state college when they decided to hire me.

I’m sure my classes in COBOL,FORTRAN, and data structures in Pascal made any difference. Well, I did take a course in C and 16 bit x86 assembly.

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