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A one-side-project-per-month challenge

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Re: A one-side-project-per-month challenge

#62
Just added two projects:

- A physics engine: https://github.com/aguaviva/Physics

- A Neural network: https://github.com/aguaviva/ArtificialIntelligence

The point was to learn the basics by implementing everything from scratch, I also wrote a tutorial to make sure I understood the theory.

Re: A one-side-project-per-month challenge

#63
post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a big difference between learning how to program and starting a library/project every month. If you want to learn how to build something, which is what programming is, there is a straitforward way of learning how to do so. Phase 1 is where you learn what programs look like. Pick any language. Learn all of the syntax and and meanings behind everything. Get to the point where you can start a project and write s…

That's certainly a good way to learn, though it's by no means the one and only best way. I personally think the best way is to go to MIT and do an EECS major. But we all have our different ways of approaching education, and I respect yours as much as I respect a person who learns based on building simple applications the can relate to and engage with better because they're more interesting.

No college education will teach you the material if you don't actually care. Many people hear "go take a CE degree' or "CS degree" and think "Now I'm a programmer" when they get out. They feel they know everything they need and as soon as they hit the real world reality drops on them like a sack of bricks.

I'm at a "decent" university and currently in my 3xx level classes people don't know how to "do coding" and I'm constantly having to help people learn some material that, had they taken the time to program on their own, they'd know. There is value to a degree but it's not in knowing how to do your skill. The value comes from 1) having a degree, 2) knowing people who have degrees, 3) being able to talk the lingo to people who respect degrees.

Now granted, 6.001 is great and I love SICP but I don't know if you can show me data of people who know absolutly nothing about computers/electronics going into those courses and being able to "do electronics" or "do computers" after getting out. I'd wager that the data will show there's a higher corilation of people who come in knowing something about computers or electronics from their own experiance who are able to get more out of the classes.

Sadly I don't think universites publish this data (would probably be bad press for them).

I'd love to be proven wrong though. It would remove another large chunk of my cynical world view.

Re: A one-side-project-per-month challenge

#64
post #46

I'm surprised by all the negative reactions. Of course you're not going to be making anything substantial in a month (most likely). Instead, you'll learn to actually finish (or semi-finish) projects and ship them regularly. This is very much like One Game a Month ( http://www.onegameamonth.com/ ). The idea is that write, learn, ship. It's nice. If you find that one of your projects takes off, or you really like it, t…

The headline should be "The One Project Per Month Challenge." For me, the term "Side-Project" implies that the goal is to generate revenue, which is not the goal of this challenge. (Edit: phrasing)

Ironically I think the meanings are the exact opposite! "Project" means billable to me, while side-project means "hobby" or practice.

Re: A one-side-project-per-month challenge

#66
post #11

I really love to see that. I believe great programmers are the one who've started countless projects from scratch on their own (of course my opinion is oversimplified here). This, 1PPM, is really what you're looking for if you want to become a great programmer. Nothing else, just that. So go for it.

I...don't know about that. I've worked with several programmers who were great at getting something up and running, but we're kind of crap at going deeper--adding depth, maintaining. I'd go as far as to say they typically had an attitude of "I got it up and running, mission accomplished!" Maybe they need to get closer to that 1000 mark to learn the value of planning for the long term, making something you can continue to build on, etc.

Re: A one-side-project-per-month challenge

#67

I'm surprised by all the negative reactions. Of course you're not going to be making anything substantial in a month (most likely). Instead, you'll learn to actually finish (or semi-finish) projects and ship them regularly. This is very much like One Game a Month ( http://www.onegameamonth.com/ ). The idea is that write, learn, ship. It's nice. If you find that one of your projects takes off, or you really like it, t…

The problem isn't the idea of doing one thing per month. It's the implementation in my mind. I don't like when people just wander around programming aimlessly. I also don't like when we drop standards to meet deadlines (I've got a looooong history of doing this and I hate it, check my github). I think completeness, reliableness, and also practicality should be king.

You shouldn't be focused on pumping out something 24/7 you should be thinking of how to make the best product that you can possibly make.

These One Game a Month games are.... "creativly different". Now granted I couldn't do a game a month and I don't think I'll be able to finish my game even in my lifetime but I wouldn't feel right lowering the quality of the game I'd like to make to fit it into a month.

Re: A one-side-project-per-month challenge

#69

I'm surprised by all the negative reactions. Of course you're not going to be making anything substantial in a month (most likely). Instead, you'll learn to actually finish (or semi-finish) projects and ship them regularly. This is very much like One Game a Month ( http://www.onegameamonth.com/ ). The idea is that write, learn, ship. It's nice. If you find that one of your projects takes off, or you really like it, t…

The problem isn't the idea of doing one thing per month. It's the implementation in my mind. I don't like when people just wander around programming aimlessly. I also don't like when we drop standards to meet deadlines (I've got a looooong history of doing this and I hate it, check my github). I think completeness, reliableness, and also practicality should be king. You shouldn't be focused on pumping out something 2…

>You shouldn't be focused on pumping out something 24/7 you should be thinking of how to make the best product that you can possibly make.

This is a false dichotomy. "Timely delivery" is also an essential feature of any product.

Or, as they say, the better is the enemy of the good.

While you're "thinking of how to make the best product that you can possibly make" others can just go ahead and make something. And that something, even if it's not the best product that one could possibly make, at least it would exist, then and there, and so would be million times more useful than any project that's still designed in someone's mind.

Re: A one-side-project-per-month challenge

#70
post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem isn't the idea of doing one thing per month. It's the implementation in my mind. I don't like when people just wander around programming aimlessly. I also don't like when we drop standards to meet deadlines (I've got a looooong history of doing this and I hate it, check my github). I think completeness, reliableness, and also practicality should be king. You shouldn't be focused on pumping out something 2…

> You shouldn't be focused on pumping out something 24/7 you should be thinking of how to make the best product that you can possibly make. This is a false dichotomy. "Timely delivery" is also an essential feature of any product. Or, as they say, the better is the enemy of the good. While you're "thinking of how to make the best product that you can possibly make" others can just go ahead and make something. And that…

When the product is contracted work*.

When the work is for yourself, you set the due date. Setting the due date at 1 month is bound to yield unsavory results.

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