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Coffee with Brian Kernighan [video]

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Re: Coffee with Brian Kernighan [video]

#2

Post by enw »

I hate that I even feel like this, but I'm always in awe when old people (in this case 80+ years old) talk in depth about software with such fluency.

I know it's self-evident, but I'm so used to being around younger folks in tech that it's really cool to see gray hairs.

Re: Coffee with Brian Kernighan [video]

#4

Post by avg_dev »

enw wrote: post #2

I hate that I even feel like this, but I'm always in awe when old people (in this case 80+ years old) talk in depth about software with such fluency. I know it's self-evident, but I'm so used to being around younger folks in tech that it's really cool to see gray hairs.

As someone approaching middle age, who has been coding professionally for a long time, I can tell you without a shred of doubt that I am a far stronger software developer than I was five years ago. I was far stronger then than I was ten years ago. The list could go on, but then you’d realize I’m really old :)

Re: Coffee with Brian Kernighan [video]

#5

Post by avg_dev »

rasengan0 wrote: post #3

Still in use, 45 years on, thank you Drs A.W.K. and Robbins! Would love to purchase an updated book! - I sure hope that .ps of the 1988 AWK book is lying around somewhere.

I remember back when I was studying programming at university the prof was demonstrating something or other on the board. He wrote a program in Java and it took about 15 lines. Someone said they could do it in 5 in Perl or something. The prof replied, “well I could do in one line of awk but that’s not the point…”

I’m watching the video now and Kernighan addresses exactly this point. He talks about using the right tool for the job, about matching only single patterns or else not using awk, the general propose nature of Python, and more.

Re: Coffee with Brian Kernighan [video]

#6

Post by systemvoltage »

enw wrote: post #2

I hate that I even feel like this, but I'm always in awe when old people (in this case 80+ years old) talk in depth about software with such fluency. I know it's self-evident, but I'm so used to being around younger folks in tech that it's really cool to see gray hairs.

I've had the pleasure of working with 60+ year old programmers. It is opposite of what you expect from the stereotypical mainstream opinions. I constantly go back to them, call them for lunch, go for walks, just so I can ask them questions about old days and how things used to work. There is so much to learn from hindsight, this knowledge is vanishing. Take advantage of learning from older people even though it doesn't fit the current trends. There is wisdom and experience under those opinions, which can sometimes be a little harsh. Similarly, read old computer books. Byte magazine has a full archive online. Read user manuals of IBM 360 system. For entrepreneurs, read old corporate press releases. Pull up a copy of Westinghouse's 1978 annual report as you fall to sleep. Fantastic stuff, I am enamored by history.

Re: Coffee with Brian Kernighan [video]

#10

Post by avg_dev »

systemvoltage wrote: post #6
enw wrote: post #2

I hate that I even feel like this, but I'm always in awe when old people (in this case 80+ years old) talk in depth about software with such fluency. I know it's self-evident, but I'm so used to being around younger folks in tech that it's really cool to see gray hairs.

I've had the pleasure of working with 60+ year old programmers. It is opposite of what you expect from the stereotypical mainstream opinions. I constantly go back to them, call them for lunch, go for walks, just so I can ask them questions about old days and how things used to work. There is so much to learn from hindsight, this knowledge is vanishing. Take advantage of learning from older people even though it doesn…

I find it interesting how stuff that was relevant for PCs in the 80s became relevant for early smartphones. I believe computing history often is cyclic in nature, so there is value in the old ways.
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