A collection of things software developers should know

Post by fish_fan » Tue, Sep 05, 2017, 4:06 PM UTC

ATsch wrote: post #31

oldandtired wrote: post #26

This is what every programmer should know: 1. Life is too short, so get a life. 2. Know that you don't know everything, so get don't arrogant. 3. Don't get caught up in the various programming "religious" wars, there's more to life than a specific point of view. 4. Laugh and enjoy the the wonderful beauty in the world around us. 5. You're as much the idiot as the person you consider an idiot. 6. Sometimes the "import…

I find that saying the phrase "get a life" to people that enjoy what they are doing is extremely condescending. If I enjoy programming all day, or having huge flame wars, or maintaining a huge collection of antique watering cans sorted by volume, then who are you to judge me for that?

Post by hackermailman » Tue, Sep 05, 2017, 4:21 PM UTC

weego wrote: post #12

Every programmer should know cpu cache read time? How many times is this going to come up. Barely anyone in the world needs to know that.

Post by brudgers » Tue, Sep 05, 2017, 4:26 PM UTC

extra88 wrote: post #127

brudgers wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the US, the specific phrase 'get a life' carries the connotation of contempt for the persons to which it is offered as advice (typically unsolicited). In normal use, it is an insult that dismisses everything about a person. It isn't just used against nerds, it is also aimed at people who are doing some menial job or at a person who is complaining about some bad behavior imposed upon them by someone who tends to ge…

Yes, the particular phase "get a life!" was used against nerds, Trekkies, by William Shatner in a Saturday Night Live sketch [0]. It wasn't a new gag, but it raised the fandom's profile into the mainstream and it's often been repeated (e.g. on The Simpsons in Comic Book Guy and his cohort). I assume the phrase was used here in the most generous sense but that's often not how it will be received. I think it's more con…

Post by losteric » Tue, Sep 05, 2017, 4:34 PM UTC

SAI_Peregrinus wrote: post #117

new_hackers wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really? It would seem that: Happiness, Health, Money, Marriage, Kids would be the correct order to process these tasks? Without the previous item(s), the latter item is harder to obtain and maintain at full functionality.

Be careful with that. There's a growing body of evidence that waiting too long to have children causes some disorders. EG Autism is far more common in children born to older parents. Money is an especially difficult one, as it's very easy to move your own goal continually upward. Happiness is also difficult, since it's almost always going to be a transient state and not a long-term thing. A better list is probably: S…

Post by codingdave » Tue, Sep 05, 2017, 4:45 PM UTC

ATsch wrote: post #31

oldandtired wrote: post #26

This is what every programmer should know: 1. Life is too short, so get a life. 2. Know that you don't know everything, so get don't arrogant. 3. Don't get caught up in the various programming "religious" wars, there's more to life than a specific point of view. 4. Laugh and enjoy the the wonderful beauty in the world around us. 5. You're as much the idiot as the person you consider an idiot. 6. Sometimes the "import…

I find that saying the phrase "get a life" to people that enjoy what they are doing is extremely condescending. If I enjoy programming all day, or having huge flame wars, or maintaining a huge collection of antique watering cans sorted by volume, then who are you to judge me for that?