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Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

blog.understudyapp.com

41–50 of 55 posts

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#41

To repeat what I said in the SICP thread from a couple of days ago: Folks, you don't need proprietary software or an iThing to get help with SICP. Hop on #scheme on freenode and check out http://schemers.org/ for resources. Get yourself a good Scheme implementation like GNU Guile or Racket and get hacking.

Question - would you recommend working through SICP in Racket? What about MIT Scheme in Emacs?

Yes, there is a language pack for SICP especially!

http://www.neilvandyke.org/racket-sicp/

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#42

To repeat what I said in the SICP thread from a couple of days ago: Folks, you don't need proprietary software or an iThing to get help with SICP. Hop on #scheme on freenode and check out http://schemers.org/ for resources. Get yourself a good Scheme implementation like GNU Guile or Racket and get hacking.

Question - would you recommend working through SICP in Racket? What about MIT Scheme in Emacs?

> Question - would you recommend working through SICP in Racket?

Yes. I used DrRacket with Neil Van Dyke's SICP package http://www.neilvandyke.org/racket-sicp/ , and that's what we recommend.

> What about MIT Scheme in Emacs?

It seemed more complicated to get running, but one of our beta testers is doing it that way, and he's happy with it.

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#43

The idea is solid, but the technology to get there is crap. People who have used a wacom or ntrig based tablet can tell you drawing and writing with anything else is, to put it bluntly, complete shit. Drawing and writing on capacitive screens is a horrible experience; No palm rejection, no pressure sensitivity, and accuracy is problematic. There is a reason why note takers, artists and others are pursuing options for…

I think this is a great point, one of the reasons that tablet and smartphone software is doing well is because the standards for the web and native software is so astonishingly low. But when it comes down to it, we already have better interfaces for computer interaction than using our fingers.

I can see the reasoning behind this product though, the iPad has a huge base of customers, and there aren't enough Surface Pro users out there.

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#44
post #36

To repeat what I said in the SICP thread from a couple of days ago: Folks, you don't need proprietary software or an iThing to get help with SICP. Hop on #scheme on freenode and check out http://schemers.org/ for resources. Get yourself a good Scheme implementation like GNU Guile or Racket and get hacking.

HN is refreshingly free of terms like M$. Why do we give iThing a free pass?

Because it's considerably shorter than "iOS device" and "iPad or iPhone or iPod"?

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#45
post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry about that! The thing is, a tablet is very well suited to the whiteboard, and we find that the whiteboard _really_ helps for this kind of working collaboration. It makes it very natural to gesture and discuss visually. Understudy works in proportion to how good of a connection it fosters. You really want the tool to vanish, and to forget that you're not really in the same room. For non-work stuff, like talking…

What about a web app? Whiteboard and video chat works great there, and it's a huge market :) ADDITION: After all, this is what Khan of Khan Academy does (he uses a wacom though, but then it's a end user decision).

I tried to tutor my niece in math using Google Hangouts and various whiteboard apps, but drawing with the mouse / trackpad was pretty difficult. Now we use Understudy and it works great, if I do say so myself.

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#46
post #36

To repeat what I said in the SICP thread from a couple of days ago: Folks, you don't need proprietary software or an iThing to get help with SICP. Hop on #scheme on freenode and check out http://schemers.org/ for resources. Get yourself a good Scheme implementation like GNU Guile or Racket and get hacking.

HN is refreshingly free of terms like M$. Why do we give iThing a free pass?

It succinctly captures the entire category of "small personal electronic device from Apple" including all present and plausible future product lines. Unlike M$, it has both derogatory and non-derogatory intonations and connotations.

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#47
post #46
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

HN is refreshingly free of terms like M$. Why do we give iThing a free pass?

It succinctly captures the entire category of "small personal electronic device from Apple" including all present and plausible future product lines. Unlike M$, it has both derogatory and non-derogatory intonations and connotations.

iDevice captures the same category without any derogatory intonations.

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#48
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

HN is refreshingly free of terms like M$. Why do we give iThing a free pass?

Because it's considerably shorter than "iOS device" and "iPad or iPhone or iPod"?

iPad is shorter still. This app isn't universal.

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#49
post #47
post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It succinctly captures the entire category of "small personal electronic device from Apple" including all present and plausible future product lines. Unlike M$, it has both derogatory and non-derogatory intonations and connotations.

iDevice captures the same category without any derogatory intonations.

It's meant to be a pejorative term. Apple is an enemy of our freedom.

Re: Show HN: Learning SICP with Understudy

#50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Question - would you recommend working through SICP in Racket? What about MIT Scheme in Emacs?

> Question - would you recommend working through SICP in Racket? Yes. I used DrRacket with Neil Van Dyke's SICP package http://www.neilvandyke.org/racket-sicp/ , and that's what we recommend. > What about MIT Scheme in Emacs? It seemed more complicated to get running, but one of our beta testers is doing it that way, and he's happy with it.

Thanks.
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