Advice for an aspiring programmer?

Hi everyone,

I'll try to detail my situation as quickly as possible, any input or advice would be greatly appreciated.

I'm a 2010 graduate of a liberal arts college with a degree in philosophy and classical studies (emphasis on Greek). Upon graduation I took a job on a mid-term senatorial campaign, before going off to travel for the winter and part of the spring. I then took temp position (through mid-September, with the possibility for an extension) at a marketing agency in the New York metro area.

When I began college, I thought I would be a comp lit or English major, but through my exposure to philosophical writings, I gradually became enamored with the type of rigor and lucidity associated with analytic philosophy and symbolic logic--had I had my current preferences then, I would have majored in mathematics or cs, but as it is I have the degree I have.

Lately, I've really taken an interest in programming--it's really not too far off reading Greek, in certain respects. I've been working my way through LPTHW and I think SICP will be next on my agenda.

I really would like to get into development one day, and I'm more than happy to teach myself the relevant languages. My worry is that no matter how hard I work, I will still lack the appropriate signaling mechanisms. I have no practical experience with python, nor a cs or math or econ degree. Given the level of competition in the economy generally right now, is there any feasible way I can make up this deficit? My hope is that I'll be taken on in a more permanent capacity at my current firm, so I can have 10 or 11 months of employment while I polish up my python/lisping skills. Does this sound like a decent plan? Is there anything else I can do to bolster my resume/make myself more appealing to perspective employers? Am I making any obvious mistakes? Is this whole thing hopeless? Thanks again for any input.

If you set goals in each language (such as a functioning PHP website) and maybe pick up a couple books I think your plan is obtainable!

INMHO, the best thing to do is to make something cool and interesting and share it. Next up is to meet other programmers, e.g. meetups, etc. Another suggestion: maybe even take a class or two just to see how learning in school is different than learning on your own. It will also expose you to more people with similar interests. I am not a fan of conventional schooling, esp. for programming, but it does have its benefits in terms of socializing with others (profs and students).

Your path is not unrealistic, some of the best programmers I know were liberal arts grads and taught themselves on the job.

Here is my take:

If you are just going to learn a programming language, there is still plenty of competition. Instead, I would suggest that you build a web-based product. It involves a lot of moving parts that you will get familiar with. It is quite an arduous task.

Don't focus on the tool (programming language); instead, step back a little bit, see the bigger picture and build something with that tool. People are much more appreciate of such efforts.

Edit: In case you need some hand holding in the initial stages, I am more than willing to help.

Let me start by saying that it's not impossible, I know this for a fact because I did it. I'm 19 years old, I don't have a degree and a few months ago I landed my first job. I'm working as a software engineer.

Having said that however, don't for a moment think it will be easy. I've been programming as a hobby since I was nine and, after finishing full-time education, I spent the best part of a year learning and brushing up on my skills. Crucially, this was not something I did in my spare time, but continuously; I was effectively in full-time education.

There are two distinct pools of knowledge that it's in your interests to nurture: theoretical knowledge and practical knowledge. You will only be effective when you have a solid grounding in both. I may have made the mistake of focussing to heavily on the theoretical, but by working is possibly the best way to gain practical knowledge, so I'm addressing the imbalance.

There are a few topics which I focused on that have proved to be invaluable to me:

* Data structures and database design,

* The web stack (by which I mean the entire stack, how does TCP work or the OS schedule threads),

* Functional programming,

* Compiler internals,

I would have also greatly benefited if I'd had known more about asynchronous programming. Specifically, how are synchronous programs translated to work asynchronously, ie, how do threads work? How is CPS conversion an alternative to using threads?

Good luck.