Should we still be learning this?

[Max]

John Zenger wrote:
> Don't overly concern yourself with your course being 100% up to date. 
> When learning programming, the concepts are what is important, not the 
> syntax or libraries you happen to be using.  Even if they were to teach 
> you the latest and greatest features of 2.4.2, that would be out of date 
> in a few months/years when the next version comes along and the Python 
> gods decide to deprecate the entire os module or something.
> 

All of us know how to program: the idea is that those who got more than 
70% for Java in high school can learn a second language instead of doing 
Java all over again.

> 
> And BTW, map and filter are such useful concepts that it makes sense to 
> teach them to students even if they will one day be deprecated in 
> Python.  If you want to teach yourself Haskell or a Lisp dialect (and 
> you should!), knowing those concepts will come in very handy.
> 

True. But I think list comprehensions are also damn useful (and AFAIR, 
Haskell has them too).

I already know some Scheme (I've played the "game" Lists And Lists, a 
Scheme tutorial, and used the GIMP's script-fu). I have tried to learn 
Haskell, but - though I think I understand everything I read on it - I 
can't get my programs to run.

--Max