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University of Reddit

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Re: University of Reddit

#31

Post by onenite »

azatris wrote: post #23
zozu wrote: post #22

There was quite some controversy about [1] this C++ course. It supposedly was a collection of bad practices and an all round bad way to learn C++. [1] http://ureddit.com/class/23620/introduction-to-c----a-video-...

Thank you for this comment! I otherwise would have dived straight into the C++ course as I have been thinking about learning it for a while now. That said, do you or does anyone have a reccommendation on an online tutorial/course for learning C++? I already have a few years of programming experience, mostly in Java, Python and Haskell. I hope it is not the wrong place and time to ask such a question.

MIT OCW to the rescue! http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-comput...

Also, Stanford's C++ course: http://www.stanford.edu/class/cs106l/index.html

Re: University of Reddit

#32

Post by purephase »

lifeformed wrote: post #30

How do they ensure that teachers know what they're talking about? There's a lot of topics I can think of where someone can easily sound like they are an expert, but instead just have an amateur understanding of it. Any kind of topic involving some amount of subjectivity would be hard to ensure that best practices are being taught.

Having worked in higher ed for 10+ years, let me tell you, in a lot of disciplines, they don't vet as much as you might think.

Certainly, high profile/cost courses with lots of interest in teaching them are, but the big money makers such as con-ed, distance learning and apprenticeship take the most convenient person available and throw them in, often at the last minute with zero preparation.

I don't see how this differs from ureddit.

Re: University of Reddit

#33

Post by AlexeyBrin »

azatris wrote: post #23
zozu wrote: post #22

There was quite some controversy about [1] this C++ course. It supposedly was a collection of bad practices and an all round bad way to learn C++. [1] http://ureddit.com/class/23620/introduction-to-c----a-video-...

Thank you for this comment! I otherwise would have dived straight into the C++ course as I have been thinking about learning it for a while now. That said, do you or does anyone have a reccommendation on an online tutorial/course for learning C++? I already have a few years of programming experience, mostly in Java, Python and Haskell. I hope it is not the wrong place and time to ask such a question.

I don't think you could find a good (modern and complete) online resource for learning C++. You will find bits of knowledge here and there.

Your best bet is to read C++ Primer 5th edition by Lippman or wait another month or two for the book of B. Stroustrup to be published.

Re: University of Reddit

#34

Post by AlexeyBrin »

onenite wrote: post #31
azatris wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thank you for this comment! I otherwise would have dived straight into the C++ course as I have been thinking about learning it for a while now. That said, do you or does anyone have a reccommendation on an online tutorial/course for learning C++? I already have a few years of programming experience, mostly in Java, Python and Haskell. I hope it is not the wrong place and time to ask such a question.

MIT OCW to the rescue! http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-comput... Also, Stanford's C++ course: http://www.stanford.edu/class/cs106l/index.html

The MIT course is a bad choice for modern C++ (this course is just C with classes). Just have a look at this lecture:

http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-comput...

The use of C-style arrays and strings is actively discouraged by most C++ gurus (Stroustrup, Sutter, Meyers).

Re: University of Reddit

#35

Post by onenite »

AlexeyBrin wrote: post #34
onenite wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

MIT OCW to the rescue! http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-comput... Also, Stanford's C++ course: http://www.stanford.edu/class/cs106l/index.html

The MIT course is a bad choice for modern C++ (this course is just C with classes). Just have a look at this lecture: http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-comput... The use of C-style arrays and strings is actively discouraged by most C++ gurus (Stroustrup, Sutter, Meyers).

Crap, I did not actually check the content to verify its quality. Thank you very much for pointing that out! You've reminded me to be more careful about offering advice, lest I do more harm than good. Again we are reminded to be wary of the advice/help given by others, even if under the best intentions.

Re: University of Reddit

#36

Post by mileswu »

drucken wrote: post #16
jonny_eh wrote: post #8

What does this have to do with Reddit?

Nothing directly, Bottom of page: University of Reddit is not in any way affiliated with Reddit or Conde Nast. FAQ: Are you affiliated with reddit? The short answer is "not yet". However, we are working on it.

Have you obtained a license to use the reddit name/brand along with the mascot/logo?

"For all of the above reasons, we require a license if you want to use the reddit brand in anything you do, both for free and for profit."[1]

[1] http://www.reddit.com/wiki/licensing

Re: University of Reddit

#37

Post by eksith »

derefr wrote: post #18
eksith wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Humans aren't APIs. If observing Stack and a whole heap of other sites (even apps and gadgets) have ever taught me anything, it's that your creation is what your users take it to be. Not what you originally intended. I mean sure, the "nudge" method works by locking, deleting even outright banning, but in the end, people will do what comes naturally. It's like trying to make water flow upwards on a waterfall. The natu…

> I mean sure, the "nudge" method works by locking, deleting even outright banning, but in the end, people will do what comes naturally. Alternatively, you can just give people a place to do what comes naturally, so that it doesn't clutter their "productive effort." Talk pages on wikis, for example.

That's true. And I guess that's what "Meta" was supposed to be, but there's still a lot of the same handicaps applied there and "polling" questions (whatever that means today vs. tomorrow) get voted down to obvlivion. E.G : http://meta.stackoverflow.com/questions/138411/why-are-const...

So even in a place that's talk "of" the place still isn't safe to talk of.

Re: University of Reddit

#38

Post by eksith »

rz2k wrote: post #12
eksith wrote: post #2

That's by far the most ambitious Reddit project I've seen. Moderation would have to be quite a bit aggressive, yet hopefully sensible, but I can see this as a genuine alternative the stack* forums (which I feel are a bit stuffy and too "closed as not constructive").

There have been things like this for a fairly long while on Reddit. Mostly, they have been along the lines of organizing a study group version of self-study following, doing something like a course on OCW. They predated Coursera, and the first three pre-Coursera/Udacity courses for ML, DB, AI got a lot of buzz in that community. However, in general, the problem has had less to do with the need to moderate, and more w…

Maybe those earlier efforts didn't because it was too connected to the rest of the community? A completely different place to discuss "nothing but" may be what was needed and if the earlier efforts had more direction, maybe they would have seen continued adoption. It's pretty easy to get distracted on Reddit after all so complete self-study may not have been very effective.

I hope this does take off and incorporate the best of those.

Re: University of Reddit

#39

Post by eogas »

lifeformed wrote: post #30

How do they ensure that teachers know what they're talking about? There's a lot of topics I can think of where someone can easily sound like they are an expert, but instead just have an amateur understanding of it. Any kind of topic involving some amount of subjectivity would be hard to ensure that best practices are being taught.

>How do they ensure that teachers know what they're talking about?

AFAIK, they don't. There was a big fiasco recently when some guy who was teaching a C++ course was featured as "course of the week" or something, which got posted to /r/programming, and they basically tore him to shreds.

A lot of people were claiming that some of the problems were nit-picky, but there were certainly some significant issues with the code. It was the sort of stuff that someone who read C++ Primer probably wouldn't do, but someone who read "How To Program C++ in 21 Days for Dummies: the Absolute Moron's Guide" might.

The presentation was pretty terrible too, but that doesn't necessarily speak towards whether he knows what he's talking about.

EDIT: Here's the thread http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/197dn1/introduc...

Re: University of Reddit

#40

Post by sethist »

purephase wrote: post #32
lifeformed wrote: post #30

How do they ensure that teachers know what they're talking about? There's a lot of topics I can think of where someone can easily sound like they are an expert, but instead just have an amateur understanding of it. Any kind of topic involving some amount of subjectivity would be hard to ensure that best practices are being taught.

Having worked in higher ed for 10+ years, let me tell you, in a lot of disciplines, they don't vet as much as you might think. Certainly, high profile/cost courses with lots of interest in teaching them are, but the big money makers such as con-ed, distance learning and apprenticeship take the most convenient person available and throw them in, often at the last minute with zero preparation. I don't see how this diff…

Which is one of the reason those degrees are viewed as less valuable than a similar degree from a more prestigious institution which is assumed to have higher (teaching/admission/grading) standards. That is still the biggest obstacle for non-traditional education. How do you assess the value of the degree and then communicate that value to others?
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