Trash Talk - Bs Cyan~Fire - Thu Jul 13, 2006 11:48 am Post subject: Bs
So I spent the past couple days up at the University of Florida for orientation.
Turns out I'll be taking a "Fundamentals of Programming" course (required for my CS major...). Also turns out the course is Java. WTF? Java eliminates almost all of what I see as the fundamentals of programming. BDwinsAlt - Thu Jul 13, 2006 11:54 am Post subject:
You should pass easily. Java isn't so bad. Just go with it. You should know most of the stuff from programming in other languages. Good luck.
Dr Brain - Thu Jul 13, 2006 12:32 pm Post subject:
Fundamentals meaning concepts, not register transfers.
Muskrat - Thu Jul 13, 2006 12:55 pm Post subject:
Indeed, OOP was my favorite class and that is probably similar. Anyways, though, you should see if you can clep out of it or something and take a liberal arts class instead. Don't take too many classes you can't use for core curriculum at first unless you have a change of heart.
Hope you had fun at orientation, I've been working with a lot of freshmen coming to my school in the fall, advising and such.
Cyan~Fire - Thu Jul 13, 2006 2:47 pm Post subject:
The reason I'm specializing so early is that I have 30 out of about 39 general education credits completed already and I missed pre-registration for the fun classes (so they were all full). I'll have first dibs on them next semester though.
But I think they should call the class "Into to Programming" or something, "Programming Fundamentals" I would call learning about the stack, heap, registers, etc. Not learning how to program ASM or anything, just knowing they're there. I highly doubt whether that will be covered in a Java course.
And no, bda, I'm not angry just because the course is Java. I understand that Java is probably the most popular language in general programming these days and its popularity is only growing.
Dr Brain - Thu Jul 13, 2006 3:05 pm Post subject:
The course you're looking for is assembly language, which you won't get until ethier sophomore or junior year.
Smong - Thu Jul 13, 2006 3:39 pm Post subject:
Where I am only people studying electronics get the option to do assembly. Even then I suspect it is for PIC or something. The architecture module had some sparc assembly mixed into the risc section.
BDwinsAlt - Thu Jul 13, 2006 4:12 pm Post subject:
I'm going to say this sercious and I am not trying to be racist, but the white schools here are poorer than the black schools. Yes I said it. The blacks keep getting new schools, very big, nice, and they have an awesome football field. Our schools are old and we have hardly any electives. We have no programming classes at all. We have basic computer classes like business tech where you learn to type correctly and what a firewall is.
Is there any way to get the money spread out to schools based on population/totalfunds or something. I don't think this is fair. I want my opprotunity to get a good education. I work my butt off in school. I teach myself mostly. All of our stuff is old.
Im glad you can get a chance to do something good in school. I think you'll do fine. Good luck.
Solo Ace - Thu Jul 13, 2006 4:15 pm Post subject:
You're trash anyway BD Alt, good education isn't going to save your shittyness.
Why are there so many courses available? I don't really know what I'll be able to expect, we just have a study named "computer science". I guess I'll have to read up...
SpecShip - Thu Jul 13, 2006 5:43 pm Post subject:
Java? ROFL.
While at that, what's wrong about learning fundamental concepts, techniques and tips from BASIC or PASCAL, snort.
Forcing someone to learn java to make ends meet, so to speak, is like a low blow to the skull.
Smong - Thu Jul 13, 2006 5:59 pm Post subject:
Java can provide object oriented stuff, strong types and has good documentation.
Dr Brain - Thu Jul 13, 2006 7:52 pm Post subject:
Lets not forget that it provides an easy to use GUI framework.
BDwinsAlt - Thu Jul 13, 2006 9:30 pm Post subject:
java applets = $$
Connect to as3 via your browser. Right DR BRIAIN. Nah im teasning you. You can keep chatnut to yourself. No hard feelings.
@Solo: Your a more shitty person in my eyes. You always flame at others and try and bring them down.
Cerium - Thu Jul 13, 2006 9:44 pm Post subject:
atleast it doesnt require VIP access to use.
Cyan~Fire - Fri Jul 14, 2006 12:09 am Post subject:
I'll restate: my only problem is the name. Practically any other name, even "Intro to OO" or something, would be fine.
I guess posting this was a mistake now that Ekted's gone, just leaving you Java tards. Mine GO BOOM - Fri Jul 14, 2006 12:30 am Post subject:
If you want some good peer-learning topics, Something Awful's SH/SC forum is doing weekly readings of papers. It just started this week. The first, Why functional programming matters, is going one right now. You don't need to be a member, as the forum is publicly viewable, and all the papers that will be read throughout the next couple of months are all publically accessiable from their original sources.
Peer-learning is my main source of all my programming knowledge. School helped a lot with all the side-stuff, such as Electrical Engineering and fun math tricks, but did almost nothing explaining about programming. Now, the hardware classes were fun, but all my programming courses revolved around doing a project in a day, and nothing else in that class for the next month.
Smong - Fri Jul 14, 2006 6:58 am Post subject:
Ekted's gone?
Cyan~Fire - Fri Jul 14, 2006 10:04 am Post subject:
That looks pretty sweet, MGB. Thanks.
Yeah, Ekted's gone. Turns out that the conversation during which he told me about it falls into the hole in my logs, but basically all that was left here for him were a bunch of yelling newbs and Java tards, so he left. I guess I'm a bit more compassionate with Java victims. Dr Brain - Fri Jul 14, 2006 12:47 pm Post subject:
Fundamentals of cooking doesn't mean the chemestry behind flavors or the quantum mechanics that govern chemestry, it means the basics. Fundamentals of programming is the same, it means basics, not basis.
Cyan~Fire - Fri Jul 14, 2006 1:01 pm Post subject:
OK... and I consider at least an awareness of stack, heap, registers, etc. to be part of the basics of programming.
You can't really compare it to cooking... well unless, say, you were just giving directions to people that cook for you.
Smong - Fri Jul 14, 2006 3:21 pm Post subject:
When you get to formal methods they'll teach you about semantics.</joke>
Dr Brain - Fri Jul 14, 2006 5:06 pm Post subject:
I don't expect that your course will cover GUIs (and I'm sure you don't expect it either), yet those are a "fundamental" part of modern programming. You're simply biased toward thinking of algorithms in the sense of register movements and ALU operations.
Just because the register transfers are the only way things can currently be implemented, don't discard the abstraction as meaningless. There are thousands of examples in math history where abstractions rather than realisms have become very important.
I guess I'll have to read up...
