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Ask HN: Top Coursera Courses?

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Re: Ask HN: Top Coursera Courses?

#21

Post by troupe »

Tomte wrote: post #4
joshlk wrote: post #2

Nand to Tetris: how a computer is built from the ground up. Starting from nand logic gates all the way to OO programming https://www.coursera.org/learn/build-a-computer

The course is good, the book is better, in my opinion. Although it covers the same, but I like its presentation much better than the video course. Nisam/Schocken: "The Elements of Computing Systems" I have only finished the hardware part, so far, but skimming the rest I can't find Tetris anywhere. Is that really missing, although it's in the title? (I know that you can program Tetris on the machine you build in the c…

On Coursera, if I remember right, the first course gets you to the point where you have a CPU that can run machine language and an assembler. They give you an assembly version of Tetris that will run on what you built.

In the second course you build the programming language that could be used to write Tetris, though I don't think you actually go through it as an exercise.

Re: Ask HN: Top Coursera Courses?

#22

Post by joshlk »

yawz wrote: post #15

Dr Barbara Oakley’s “Learning How to Learn” [0] is great. Edit: It gives an important understanding on how our minds function and how we learn, which, I think, forms the basis of effective work. Knowing how to work, and being an effective learner are incredibly important qualities in life. [0] https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn

What’s good about it?

Re: Ask HN: Top Coursera Courses?

#24

Post by thecleaner »

oli5679 wrote: post #10

I really enjoyed Tim Roughgarden's 'Algorithms' specialisation. The first half are actually on Stanford's online learning platform for free. https://www.coursera.org/specializations/algorithms

Highly recommend this course. Good coverage of topics and the explanations help build intuition.

Re: Ask HN: Top Coursera Courses?

#25

Post by thecleaner »

joshlk wrote: post #22
yawz wrote: post #15

Dr Barbara Oakley’s “Learning How to Learn” [0] is great. Edit: It gives an important understanding on how our minds function and how we learn, which, I think, forms the basis of effective work. Knowing how to work, and being an effective learner are incredibly important qualities in life. [0] https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn

What’s good about it?

You can get a sample out of her Google talk on YouTube. Basically the course tells you ideas about how to read/manage time to learn things more efficiently.

Re: Ask HN: Top Coursera Courses?

#28

Post by yawz »

joshlk wrote: post #22
yawz wrote: post #15

Dr Barbara Oakley’s “Learning How to Learn” [0] is great. Edit: It gives an important understanding on how our minds function and how we learn, which, I think, forms the basis of effective work. Knowing how to work, and being an effective learner are incredibly important qualities in life. [0] https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn

What’s good about it?

Thanks. I added some more comments.

Re: Ask HN: Top Coursera Courses?

#30

Post by bhrgunatha »

oli5679 wrote: post #10

I really enjoyed Tim Roughgarden's 'Algorithms' specialisation. The first half are actually on Stanford's online learning platform for free. https://www.coursera.org/specializations/algorithms

I took his 2 algorithm courses on Coursera's original platform. They were stellar. In particular making practical problems that have a calculable answer that you implement yourself in whatever language you choose and check as part of the course. As opposed to having some online interpreter for some specific language.

That was then hosted on Stanford's own Lagunita platform (based on the edX platform I think.)

Stanford then split those 2 courses into 4 on Coursera's new platform - the same material I believe but packaged differently.

Stanford then closed its Lagunita platform and those original 2 courses are now offered on edX.

A similar story with Alex Aiken's excellent Compiler course and Jeffrey Ullman's Automata course too. I'm not even sure if they are still available on Coursera or not.

[1] https://www.edx.org/course/algorithms-design-and-analysis

[2] https://www.edx.org/course/algorithms-design-and-analysis-pa...

[3] https://www.edx.org/course/compilers

[4] https://www.edx.org/course/automata-theory

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