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Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

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Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#111

Post by mhh__ »

kyawzazaw wrote: post #99
WalterBright wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Entry level tech jobs are remarkably scarce and difficult to obtain/maintain. Entry level jobs are available everywhere - contributing to open source programs. Of course, nobody is going to immediately write you a check for that. But once you build a track record of competent contributions, people will be willing to pay you for more, and may even hire you. I'm proud that many contributors to the D language have lev…

and how many is that? > But once you build a track record of competent contributions how hard is this? especially for the population who is in need of actual employment. I am a cs student and has worked professionally but even then making any meaningful contribution to any decent language is beyond what I can afford (time/energy/financial-wise). More often than not, there is a lack of documentation (yes, I know this…

I recently started working for the D foundation - the pay per hour is pretty reasonable considering I'm 20, but I nominally only do a few hours a week so I wouldn't be able to live off of it.

I basically got the job by bothering to write a nice email asking to do it as far as I can tell - I like to think I know what I'm doing (!) but realistically this is a sociopolitical thing not magic.

We have a few more people also working for the foundation who are paid more than me, you could live off that.

The D community is small but very efficient in places, there are a bunch of companies hiring D developers for quite a bit of money, just no where near as many as there are (say) C++ shops. For example, the company funding my position at the foundation manages about 6 Billion dollars raised to the power of D - we're lucky to have them.

We do need some fresh blood, but we can change that now we have people working on it.

Edit: Forgot my birthday was 2 days ago (too much programming rots the brain)

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#112

Post by mhh__ »

WalterBright wrote: post #104
kyawzazaw wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

and how many is that? > But once you build a track record of competent contributions how hard is this? especially for the population who is in need of actual employment. I am a cs student and has worked professionally but even then making any meaningful contribution to any decent language is beyond what I can afford (time/energy/financial-wise). More often than not, there is a lack of documentation (yes, I know this…

> how many is that? Dunno, I never kept track. But I also know that a big motivator for D Conference sponsors is recruiting, and a big reason people attend is to get recruited. It's a win all around. > how hard is this? It's as hard as you can handle. Of course, competently doing the harder things gets you more leet cred. > beyond what I can afford (time/energy/financial-wise). If you're out of work, you have the tim…

WRT to the last point, just put what you can in a PR and we'll review it - always tell someone if you think they're wrong, but work just hard when helping them be right and the world ends up a better place.

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#113

Post by Layke1123 »

bryanrasmussen wrote: post #79
Layke1123 wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I upvoted you, but I want to make sure my reasons for doing so are accurate. This was sarcasm, yes? It might not be so obvious if others read through this so just want to clarify.

I was drily sarcastic yes, as it is obvious that very few people are in prison for assault any argument that makes an appeal to the emotions with the phrasing used is somewhat deserving of being punctured. I thought my response good at indicating the absurdity.

Oh absolutely. I loved it. Just wanted to make sure anyone else who read it was unsure that my comment would remove all doubt.

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#114

Post by acct776 »

alexashka wrote: post #93
underseacables wrote: post #6

In 2011-2014 I taught English and mathematics as a volunteer in a prison, and unless you’ve been there, nothing can prepare you for how truly awful America’s prison system is. The federal system is a little better, but when you get down to state prisons it gets exponentially worse. In my humble opinion, we have a vengeance and retribution mentality towards prisons in this country, when we should have a rehabilitation…

If it made financial sense, there would be rehabilitation and re-integration. In my humble opinion, we have a magical wishful thinking (should this, should that) mentality towards the way the world works, when we should have an evidence based, rational approach instead.

If it made financial sense to the people in power....

They have no issue spending your money on this stuff with your manufactured consent.

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#115

Post by sokoloff »

threatofrain wrote: post #78
lldbg wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was not complaining about anything. They aren't ex-felons, after they are released, they are felons. I do not think you understood my original comment, since you keep quoting that sentence only. Where is the restitution to the aggrieved party? The assaulted, the robbed, the beaten, the raped? You pay for what you do, and if your enterprise is criminal, you pay in time behind bars. Personal responsibility. Why would…

> Where is the restitution to the aggrieved party? The assaulted, the robbed, the beaten, the raped? You pay for what you do, and if your enterprise is criminal, you pay in time behind bars. Personal responsibility. Why would anyone want to hire a wife-beater? Criminal law is about wrongs against the state. In regards to payment for restitution, how is the state being restored by somebody rotting in jail? What sort o…

Criminals commit very few crimes against the public while incarcerated.

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#116

Post by guerrilla »

bluefirebrand wrote: post #84
giarc wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My grandfather and my high school science teacher both taught in youth "detention centres" for periods in their career. They both said students there were better behaved than regular schools. For the "inmates" (for lack of better term), school was a privilege and if they misbehaved, they couldn't attend. School was a good break from your cell/room.

Kind of funny that kids (and adults) often have a mentality that school is/was a prison, something they were sent to against their will. When people are in prison and school becomes something that can be taken away, it looks more like a privilege. Human brains are weird.

> Human brains are weird.

I don't think it's that weird: it just means that the judgement is relative.

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#117

Post by sokoloff »

rendall wrote: post #61
ralusek wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's crazy is that you think that most Americans think even the smallest crime should mean life in prison plus anal rape.

HN is marvelous, in that even the slightest hyperbole will be pointed out as incorrect. By "marvelous" of course I mean tedious

I don’t think your prior post falls into category of “even the slightest hyperbole”.

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#118

Post by sokoloff »

pwinnski wrote: post #83
adamc wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am interested in whether there is any actual evidence retribution works, in terms of recidivism. My first guess would be that the awful experiences in prison just fuck up people more.

Your first guess is borne out by the recidivism rate, which is in the high-80s nationwisde.

If a group with a prior criminal behavior rate of near 100% has that rate reduced to 87%, is that evidence that prison is fucking them up even more?

(I think prison probably is fucking people up more, but a mere citation of high recidivism rate isn’t evidence of that to me, given the prior.)

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#119

Post by sokoloff »

benlivengood wrote: post #56
lldbg wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think that retribution, which is of course the principal component of justice, is a key part of prisons. Somewhere the scales must be balanced, and if not in prisons, where then? Should the assaulted be happy with the fact that the inmate will get a job? That is not to say that prisons should be blind to the fact that inmates will eventually be released. There are plenty of people who have committed no crime, but g…

> Should the assaulted be happy with the fact that the inmate will get a job? Would the assaulted be happier having to work to support the attacker for the rest of their life?

Some people are quite obviously unfit to participate in free society. Society has to deal with them one way or another.

(I’m not claiming that it’s as many as we have incarcerated now, but it’s patently not “zero people”.)

Re: Program teaches prisoners coding so they can land tech jobs once released

#120

Post by worker767424 »

whimsicalism wrote: post #69
sokoloff wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is that "typical" or "top 10 highest-paying" company?

> Is that "typical" or "top 10 highest-paying" company? Many, many more than "top 10 highest-paying." But yes, generally for six figure entry level roles.

Don't all entry level software engineering roles in the Bay Area pay six figures these days?
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