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Developing Dataflow-Like Programming Systems

kickstarter.com

1–10 of 17 posts

Re: Developing Dataflow-Like Programming Systems

#4
post #2

Are there any links etc to systems or tools the author has worked on? I'm interested in the subject matter but usually I look for a book by someone with demonstrable domain expertise.

Did a bit of clicking around - looks like he's written something called [Relay][1].

[1]: http://www.deepfriedcode.com/relay/index.html

Re: Developing Dataflow-Like Programming Systems

#6

Not sure why a book needs crowdfunding: what costs need to be covered that prevent an author from just writing it?

supposing it takes you N hours to write it and you value your time K dollars/hour than the cost is N*K that you may have spent doing something else be it consulting, writing technical articles for a magazine or spending time with your family.

Given the goal (3K$) I'd be inclined to consider this a "if I pre-sell this much, it's worth my time, otherwise I'll do something else".

Re: Developing Dataflow-Like Programming Systems

#8
I've worked with Flow-based programming in the past, and I use a similar model and principles when writing network servers.

Looking at the proposed table of contents, the topics listed are the topics I would like to read about.

I'm going to support this Kickstarter campaign because I think this model of programming is going to become increasingly more and more prevalent in the next 5 years.

One of the hardest problems I've run into is scheduling, and I look forward to reading his opinions on it.

Re: Developing Dataflow-Like Programming Systems

#9
post #2

Are there any links etc to systems or tools the author has worked on? I'm interested in the subject matter but usually I look for a book by someone with demonstrable domain expertise.

Did a bit of clicking around - looks like he's written something called [Relay][1]. [1]: http://www.deepfriedcode.com/relay/index.html

Relay looks a bit like MAX or Quartz Composer or vvvv. After writing a couple data flow DSLs for visual music, I think I'll support his work. Would prefer C++ over C#, as I now code for iOS.

Re: Developing Dataflow-Like Programming Systems

#10
post #6

Not sure why a book needs crowdfunding: what costs need to be covered that prevent an author from just writing it?

supposing it takes you N hours to write it and you value your time K dollars/hour than the cost is N*K that you may have spent doing something else be it consulting, writing technical articles for a magazine or spending time with your family. Given the goal (3K$) I'd be inclined to consider this a "if I pre-sell this much, it's worth my time, otherwise I'll do something else".

I asked the author this very question and his response seemed to be that he has already been planning on writing the book for a long time and the goal is just a small compensation for doing something he loves.

As you said, $3k doesn't go very far if you're thinking in terms of $/hr.

The only issue for me with backing this project is, the author does not have experience being a write/teacher. As a developer he has experience documenting the systems he creates, but I'm not sure how easily that translates to writing a book aimed at teaching a complex concept like dataflow systems.

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