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A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

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Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#181

Post by globnomulous »

globnomulous wrote: post #86
zahlman wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I have severe ADHD. I could not survive in the tech world without treatment and medication. YMMV, but you should get treatment if you haven't already. I won't speak for OP, but from what I've been able to figure out locally, it's quite difficult (will take years and is largely down to chance, and anything you might to do help the process along is inhibited by the condition itself) to even get a diagnosis unless you…

That's a good point. The delay varies wildly from place to place. In the US, if you have good medical coverage, you can get a diagnosis and start treatment in a month or two. In Western Europe -- partly because of the nature of their medical system but also because of their much greater cultural skepticism towards medication -- the wait can indeed be years. This partly kept me from accepting a job I badly wanted in C…

Christ, I need to practice brevity.

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#182

Post by raddan »

danans wrote: post #177
raddan wrote: post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have always found this quote annoying. There are many ways to solve problems, but when you constrain yourself to solving them mechanistically, that is what makes computer science computer science. Virtually every theoretical CS paper implicitly presupposes a specific model of computation. Sometimes they even say it explicitly. Sure, computer science is not about a specific computer. But it is definitely about compu…

> There are many ways to solve problems, but when you constrain yourself to solving them mechanistically, that is what makes computer science computer science. How would one solve a computational problem non-mechanistically? Even if executed with pen and paper, or sticks scribbling on sand, any algorithm is still mechanistic.

Non-algorithmically, using intuition, like a (non-programmer) human.

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#183

Post by raddan »

tkcranny wrote: post #167
raddan wrote: post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have always found this quote annoying. There are many ways to solve problems, but when you constrain yourself to solving them mechanistically, that is what makes computer science computer science. Virtually every theoretical CS paper implicitly presupposes a specific model of computation. Sometimes they even say it explicitly. Sure, computer science is not about a specific computer. But it is definitely about compu…

Respectfully I disagree. I believe what Dijkstra is getting at is that the specifics of modern computers aren’t “relevant” at all. Ultimately it’s the science of information and whats computable. Be that a modern day silicon processor at X gigahertz, a pen and paper, or a universe sized computer, that’s irrelevant for the science itself.

We don’t actually disagree. Note that Dijkstra did not say “modern computer.” He said “computer.” Computer science is in a major way about what “is computable.”

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#184

Post by satyrun »

chbkall wrote: post #45
albertojacini wrote: post #5

I started when I was 34, for the same motivations that you describe. It become my profession and my hobby. I'm now 47 and I'm still enjoying the ride a lot.

Right there is my motivation.

The difference between starting in 2012 and 2025 is absolutely massive.

We need good teachers in these areas. I think this is an insane idea on many levels.

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#185

Post by knighthack »

lisp2240 wrote: post #130

Nobody else will tell you the truth: nobody will ever hire you as a software developer. You will never get past the filter. I tried to enter the field at 35. I couldn’t get an interview with a CS degree. I did everything right. Good GPA. Portfolio. Professional resume help. Sent applications for two years and heard nothing. Now I’m 45 with nothing to show for it. All those late nights studying coding interview questi…

I have some doubts about your statements. If you can't get a job at FAANG or the major startups, sure - that makes absolute sense. Competition is crazy.

If you can't get a job at all, that makes no sense, and probably speaks more to the fact that you might be an academic parrot who can talk code, but not write code, as an actual software developer with practical abilities. And that goes more to your lack of practice, rather than lack of knowledge. The world is not to blame in that regard but you.

Alternatively, try different domains - your skills might work little wonder in the software world, but might move mountains in other (especially labour-intensive) domains.

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#186

Post by chbkall »

delis-thumbs-7e wrote: post #179

I was 37 last year when I finally got frustrated with my job and started to learn Python. Took a couple of open for all MOOC’s. Decided that damn this is cool and took math and alghorithm’s as well. Now I was accepted to the same university where a certain guy called Torvalds created Linux. I have written countless Python scripts and apps past year and am now learning C to actually make stuff I want to (OpenGL shader…

This is very inspiring. I hope I get to walk down this path.

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#187

Post by chbkall »

Thank you everyone for all your kinds words, advice (both cautionary and otherwise), resources, encouragement. Some of you also took the time to personally reach out to me and offer help. I had never intended the post to be read by so many people but I am truly grateful to each one of you who did so (and also took time to comment and email). I am also slightly embarrassed by so much attention.

There is lot to unpack from the comment threads below and I will be doing that in the coming days. As recommended by several of you, I have also added an RSS feed on my blog to help you follow my journey.

Thanks!

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#188

Post by danans »

raddan wrote: post #182
danans wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> There are many ways to solve problems, but when you constrain yourself to solving them mechanistically, that is what makes computer science computer science. How would one solve a computational problem non-mechanistically? Even if executed with pen and paper, or sticks scribbling on sand, any algorithm is still mechanistic.

Non-algorithmically, using intuition, like a (non-programmer) human.

But is it a computational problem then?

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#189

Post by raddan »

danans wrote: post #188
raddan wrote: post #182

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Non-algorithmically, using intuition, like a (non-programmer) human.

But is it a computational problem then?

Try doing a calculus problem. E.g., integration. Even if you do it on paper, your approach is probably wildly different than a computer integration algorithm. An algorithm that does it symbolically, ala Mathematica, is a pretty difficult thing to write for an arbitrary mathematical expression. People solve those problems largely through intuition, with a sprinkling of procedures that they remember.

Re: A 37-year-old wanting to learn computer science

#190

Post by danans »

raddan wrote: post #189
danans wrote: post #188

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But is it a computational problem then?

Try doing a calculus problem. E.g., integration. Even if you do it on paper, your approach is probably wildly different than a computer integration algorithm. An algorithm that does it symbolically, ala Mathematica, is a pretty difficult thing to write for an arbitrary mathematical expression. People solve those problems largely through intuition, with a sprinkling of procedures that they remember.

> People solve those problems largely through intuition, with a sprinkling of procedures that they remember.

Without making the claim that LLMs have intuition (and certainly not inspiration), what you describe sounds analogous to an LLM with function calling.

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