[TriPython] Wake tech computer programming
Josh Johnson
lionface.lemonface at gmail.com
Wed Jan 6 12:04:35 EST 2016
This is a good question - I know there are lots of folks who work in
academia on this list, and people who teach python. This is also a good
question to pose to your instructor :) (let us know what they say).
With regards to, "how computers really work and understanding the logic
underneath", I found Code[1], by Charles Petzold to be extremely
enlightening. It felt comprehensive enough to fill in gaps I had in my
prior understanding, but also gave me enough pointers to specific works and
concepts to dig way deeper.
Having just read Code last year, I will warn you that it's a bit old.
However, the antiquated parts are merely references to modern (at the time)
technology. Personally, I found that quite nostalgic, and it didn't detract
at all from the core information.
I found the book very accessible. The author helps you construct analogs of
the earliest computers, essentially as a mental model (although most could
could be physically constructed if you wanted to do so and had lots of wire
laying around). Along the way you learn about some of the math and theory
behind it all, without getting too much in the weeds. It goes kind of fast
toward the end - if I had one major criticism, it would be that I wish the
author had delved in deeper when he talks about compiler design, algorithms
and such, but I know that there are plenty of books about that, the least
(ha, really the most?!) of which being Knuth's Art of Computer
Programming[2] (which I've vowed to work through "one of these days").
Cheers,
JJ
p.s.
I've been a professional programmer for 15+ years (tinkered for 5 or so
before that), didn't do the college thing. I'm very interested in how
people learn how to program.
[1] http://www.charlespetzold.com/code/
[2] http://www-cs-faculty.stanford.edu/~uno/taocp.html
On Wed, Jan 6, 2016 at 11:12 AM, Luis Valencia <livalencia at my.waketech.edu>
wrote:
> Warning: You might get a case of TL; DR while reading this.
>
> Hello all!
>
> I have posted a few times here and there but I will introduce myself once
> more. My name is Luis, and I'm currently enrolled at Wake Tech Community
> College. I am currently pursuing the "Computer Programming" degree, I
> decided to switch my majors after discovering how awesome Python and
> programming in general is to me. With that being said I'm in school purely
> to learn, I find that by taking my time and not rushing though the courses
> I enjoy them a whole lot more, and find myself having those "aha" moments
> quite often.
>
>
>
> I find the Python community to be extremely welcoming and friendly which
> is important to me since I love asking questions, and by nature I am very
> inquisitive of how things work. I am excited to be starting my first class
> after teaching myself Python for roughly 7-8 months at a very slow pace -
> with a full time job and a wife. I manage to squeeze the adequate time to
> learn, and after asking question (Thank you Quora!) I felt that I
> needed/need that edge of formal education and how computers really work and
> understanding the logic underneath to be a successful uhmm..programmer? I
> will let time answer that question.
>
>
>
> My first class is is "Intro to Prog & Logic". I was excited, but now even
> more so after finding that they will be using Python! They will be using
> this learning material called "Starting out with Python, Student Value
> Edition with MyProgrammingLab" which I found mixed reviews on it. My
> question is how close, or rather why won't community colleges use free and
> open material such as "Think Python: How to Think Like a Computer
> Scientist" which I have found to be great, there is also "Programming for
> Everybody (Getting Started with Python)" taught by Dr. Charles Severance
> from the University of Michigan on coursera, he has made all the materials,
> such as slides and book available for free.
>
> I would love to hear thoughts from you, and also to reiterate the question
> as to why not use free material or integrate the mentioned material to add
> to the learning experience.
>
>
> All the best,
> Luis
> _______________________________________________
> TriZPUG mailing list
> TriZPUG at python.org
> https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/trizpug
> http://tripython.org is the Triangle Python Users Group
>
-------------- next part --------------
This is a good question - I know there are lots of folks who work in
academia on this list, and people who teach python. This is also a good
question to pose to your instructor :) (let us know what they say).
With regards to, "how computers really work and understanding the logic
underneath", I found Code[1], by Charles Petzold to be extremely
enlightening. It felt comprehensive enough to fill in gaps I had in my
prior understanding, but also gave me enough pointers to specific works
and concepts to dig way deeper.
Having just read Code last year, I will warn you that it's a bit old.
However, the antiquated parts are merely references to modern (at the
time) technology. Personally, I found that quite nostalgic, and it didn't
detract at all from the core information.
I found the book very accessible. The author helps you construct analogs
of the earliest computers, essentially as a mental model (although most
could could be physically constructed if you wanted to do so and had lots
of wire laying around). Along the way you learn about some of the math and
theory behind it all, without getting too much in the weeds. It goes kind
of fast toward the end - if I had one major criticism, it would be that I
wish the author had delved in deeper when he talks about compiler design,
algorithms and such, but I know that there are plenty of books about that,
the least (ha, really the most?!) of which being Knuth's Art of Computer
Programming[2] (which I've vowed to work through "one of these days").
Cheers,
JJ
p.s.
I've been a professional programmer for 15+ years (tinkered for 5 or so
before that), didn't do the college thing. I'm very interested in how
people learn how to program.
[1] [1]http://www.charlespetzold.com/code/
[2] [2]http://www-cs-faculty.stanford.edu/~uno/taocp.html
On Wed, Jan 6, 2016 at 11:12 AM, Luis Valencia
<[3]livalencia at my.waketech.edu> wrote:
Warning: You might get a case of TL; DR while reading this.
Hello all!
I have posted a few times here and there but I will introduce myself
once more. My name is Luis, and I'm currently enrolled at Wake Tech
Community College. I am currently** pursuing the "Computer Programming"
degree, I decided to switch my majors after** discovering how awesome
Python and programming in general is to me. With that being said I'm in
school purely to learn, I find that by taking my time and not rushing
though the courses I enjoy them a whole lot more, and find myself having
those "aha" moments quite often.
I find the Python community to be extremely welcoming and friendly which
is important to me since I love asking questions, and by nature I am
very inquisitive of how things work. I am excited to be starting my
first class after teaching myself Python for roughly 7-8 months at a
very slow pace - with a full time job and a wife. I manage to squeeze
the adequate time to learn, and after asking question (Thank you Quora!)
I felt that I needed/need that edge of formal education and how
computers really work and understanding the logic underneath to be a
successful uhmm..programmer? I will let time answer that question.
My first class is is "Intro to Prog & Logic". I was excited, but now
even more so after finding that they will be using Python! They will be
using this learning material called "Starting out with Python, Student
Value Edition with MyProgrammingLab" which I found mixed reviews on it.
My question is how close, or rather why won't community colleges use
free and open material such as "Think Python: How to Think Like a
Computer Scientist" which I have found to be great, there is also
"Programming for Everybody (Getting Started with Python)" taught by Dr.
Charles Severance from the University of Michigan on coursera, he has
made all the materials, such as slides and book available for free.
I would love to hear thoughts from you, and also to reiterate the
question as to why not use free material or integrate the mentioned
material to add to the learning experience.
All the best,
Luis
_______________________________________________
TriZPUG mailing list
[4]TriZPUG at python.org
[5]https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/trizpug
[6]http://tripython.org is the Triangle Python Users Group
References
Visible links
1. http://www.charlespetzold.com/code/
2. http://www-cs-faculty.stanford.edu/~uno/taocp.html
3. mailto:livalencia at my.waketech.edu
4. mailto:TriZPUG at python.org
5. https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/trizpug
6. http://tripython.org/
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