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Ask HN: Programming 101 online course recommendations?

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Ask HN: Programming 101 online course recommendations?

#1
I'm non-tech but am developing an app.

Right now, there is a language barrier between the developers and myself because I don't know the jargon. I say something and they think its something else, I try explaining how it should work, they fix it and it's not fixed.

It's inefficient and I feel ignorant for not being educated/able to efficient communicate. Can you make any recommendations of courses or where I should start?

I think starting with computer science (anatomy of a computer, history of computing, etc) and then moving into Java is probably the way to go.

Re: Ask HN: Programming 101 online course recommendations?

#5
Look into Behavior Driven Development, this is a methodology designed explicitly to prevent the problem you are experiencing.

If you really want to learn programming, I recommend https://eloquentjavascript.net/ , this book is targeted at beginners but has enough rigor to give you a good base. JavaScript is also lingua-franca of web development. It is also a much simpler language than JavaScript with a smaller learning curve.

Re: Ask HN: Programming 101 online course recommendations?

#8
One hint from my experience trying to explain technical things to other people. If they reply something in the lines of "Yes, I understand" that more often than not[1] translates into either "I have no clue what you are talking about" or "I misunderstood". Ask them to describe in their own words what you asked them to do. Be also prepared that their answer may make you realize that what you think you want makes no sense. You can't ask people draw red lines with green ink.[2]

[1] Of course, there are exceptions. but you would not be asking here if you worked with them. And you do quickly recognize the people that just nod and get sh*t done. They are rare, however.

[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg

Re: Ask HN: Programming 101 online course recommendations?

#9
Have you tried explaining what you want in a completely non-technical way?

A mistake/mis-step clients commonly make is trying to use the correct terminology/jargon which doesn't mean what they think it means, but the developer(s) think you know what you're on about so take you at face value.

Something common I've found is clients insisting on me using the latest buzzword technology even when it's not what they need.

And I'm not saying that's what you're doing, but trust your developers to do what you've hired them to do.

It's not a sign of being ignorant, everyone has different strengths, but you don't need to learn the entire trade just to communicate effectively.

Re: Ask HN: Programming 101 online course recommendations?

#10
Or read about agile user story mapping, user personas, user stories and write your requirements that way. If that is not enough - get a UI/UX designer who'll translate your requirements into interactive prototypes which will somewhat serve as requirements for the developers.
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