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CIRCLE WITH A DOT

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  3. what are we even doing here man

what are we even doing here man

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  • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

    Usborne released a bunch of their old 80s programming books for free a while back, and they're all just a gem:

    Link Preview Image
    Computer and coding books from Usborne | Usborne | Be Curious

    Usborne children's coding books for a new generation

    favicon

    (usborne.com)

    dan@mastodon.durrans.comD This user is from outside of this forum
    dan@mastodon.durrans.comD This user is from outside of this forum
    dan@mastodon.durrans.com
    wrote last edited by
    #20

    @foone I learnt everything I know from Computer Fun… I still have the book.

    Link Preview ImageLink Preview ImageLink Preview ImageLink Preview Image
    u0421793@toot.pikopublish.ingU 1 Reply Last reply
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    • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

      if someone doesn't have experience with arrays, then they don't have enough experience with programming to hire them to program for you. they are still on page 9 of the programming book

      nantucketlit@mastodon.socialN This user is from outside of this forum
      nantucketlit@mastodon.socialN This user is from outside of this forum
      nantucketlit@mastodon.social
      wrote last edited by
      #21

      @foone Arrays are when it stars getting fun. I think if someone's starting out and they get excited learning about multi-dimensional arrays, that's a good sign.

      1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • linear@nya.socialL linear@nya.social
        @foone@digipres.club i will take this opportunity to once again tell tale of the time i worked on an embedded device with a firmware written in C, roughly a 150,000-line codebase on a little STM32 chip

        the original author of the code base did not, in fact, seem to understand what an array was.

        the device communicated to another device bolted to the same machine, using MODBUS. with potentially up to 10,000 MODBUS registers storing data, but realistically only a few actually in use.

        the file defining the structure where the data was stored for the registers simply made a struct, with elements starting at "reg0" and incrementing up to "reg10000". the implementation file was just as bad.

        this is why the codebase was roughly 150,000 lines. it should have been perhaps 5000.


        the code used a small function that did pointer math in order to actually access the register, usually, unless it was referenced directly in code, or sometimes used a macro instead.

        none of this was even the worst offense within the codebase.
        gloriouscow@oldbytes.spaceG This user is from outside of this forum
        gloriouscow@oldbytes.spaceG This user is from outside of this forum
        gloriouscow@oldbytes.space
        wrote last edited by
        #22

        @linear @foone

        embedded undertale

        1 Reply Last reply
        0
        • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

          what are we even doing here man

          Link Preview Image
          kgmadee2@mathstodon.xyzK This user is from outside of this forum
          kgmadee2@mathstodon.xyzK This user is from outside of this forum
          kgmadee2@mathstodon.xyz
          wrote last edited by
          #23

          @foone im not a developer, but I can say in good conscience that I do 🙂

          1 Reply Last reply
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          • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

            Usborne released a bunch of their old 80s programming books for free a while back, and they're all just a gem:

            Link Preview Image
            Computer and coding books from Usborne | Usborne | Be Curious

            Usborne children's coding books for a new generation

            favicon

            (usborne.com)

            th@social.v.stT This user is from outside of this forum
            th@social.v.stT This user is from outside of this forum
            th@social.v.st
            wrote last edited by
            #24

            @foone I've posted this page from Usborne's guide to jargon before and commented that I'd be happy if all programmers were as computer literate as grade school students in the 80s.

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            foone@digipres.clubF 1 Reply Last reply
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            • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

              if someone doesn't have experience with arrays, then they don't have enough experience with programming to hire them to program for you. they are still on page 9 of the programming book

              barubary@infosec.exchangeB This user is from outside of this forum
              barubary@infosec.exchangeB This user is from outside of this forum
              barubary@infosec.exchange
              wrote last edited by
              #25

              @foone Hey, functional programmers need jobs, too!

              1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                what are we even doing here man

                Link Preview Image
                nuclearoatmeal@beige.partyN This user is from outside of this forum
                nuclearoatmeal@beige.partyN This user is from outside of this forum
                nuclearoatmeal@beige.party
                wrote last edited by
                #26

                @foone

                Well, ok, that's a silly requirement. But do you have experience in Loops (flow control)?

                1 Reply Last reply
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                • th@social.v.stT th@social.v.st

                  @foone I've posted this page from Usborne's guide to jargon before and commented that I'd be happy if all programmers were as computer literate as grade school students in the 80s.

                  Link Preview Image
                  foone@digipres.clubF This user is from outside of this forum
                  foone@digipres.clubF This user is from outside of this forum
                  foone@digipres.club
                  wrote last edited by
                  #27

                  @th god that'd be nice

                  1 Reply Last reply
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                  • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                    See? Page 9. Arrays.

                    Link Preview Image
                    klausman@mas.toK This user is from outside of this forum
                    klausman@mas.toK This user is from outside of this forum
                    klausman@mas.to
                    wrote last edited by
                    #28

                    @foone What's weird is that I distincly remember page 9 (its illustrations, mostly), but I don't remember the book cover. I grew up in 80s West Germany, so maybe they were used in a different (or translated) book. Definitely a nostalgia hit 🙂

                    foone@digipres.clubF 1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                      if someone doesn't have experience with arrays, then they don't have enough experience with programming to hire them to program for you. they are still on page 9 of the programming book

                      revk@toot.me.ukR This user is from outside of this forum
                      revk@toot.me.ukR This user is from outside of this forum
                      revk@toot.me.uk
                      wrote last edited by
                      #29

                      @foone reminds me of the early 80s where we got code form teachers for educational stuff. And one guy understood subroutines by not arrays. He had one that was full of
                      IF I=1 RETURN V1
                      IF I=2 RETURN V2
                      …
                      Amazing stuff.

                      henryk@chaos.socialH 1 Reply Last reply
                      0
                      • klausman@mas.toK klausman@mas.to

                        @foone What's weird is that I distincly remember page 9 (its illustrations, mostly), but I don't remember the book cover. I grew up in 80s West Germany, so maybe they were used in a different (or translated) book. Definitely a nostalgia hit 🙂

                        foone@digipres.clubF This user is from outside of this forum
                        foone@digipres.clubF This user is from outside of this forum
                        foone@digipres.club
                        wrote last edited by
                        #30

                        @klausman yeah, different publishers often use different covers, so I imagine the west german publisher just made their own cover

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                          Usborne released a bunch of their old 80s programming books for free a while back, and they're all just a gem:

                          Link Preview Image
                          Computer and coding books from Usborne | Usborne | Be Curious

                          Usborne children's coding books for a new generation

                          favicon

                          (usborne.com)

                          flxtr@social.tchncs.deF This user is from outside of this forum
                          flxtr@social.tchncs.deF This user is from outside of this forum
                          flxtr@social.tchncs.de
                          wrote last edited by
                          #31

                          @foone For non-us users: the site is guessing your country and redirects to 404 page, if guess != "us" 🙄 But it's not geo fencing. You need to pick en-us at the home page and then request the above URL again. 😬

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                            what are we even doing here man

                            Link Preview Image
                            seconduniverse@autistics.lifeS This user is from outside of this forum
                            seconduniverse@autistics.lifeS This user is from outside of this forum
                            seconduniverse@autistics.life
                            wrote last edited by
                            #32

                            @foone hey I know arrays! I can do big ones, small ones, multidimensional ones. I also know variables and indentation!!! Hire me!!!!!!!!

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                              what are we even doing here man

                              Link Preview Image
                              mahadevank@mastodon.socialM This user is from outside of this forum
                              mahadevank@mastodon.socialM This user is from outside of this forum
                              mahadevank@mastodon.social
                              wrote last edited by
                              #33

                              @foone yeah, that's it - arrays - that's all I have experience with, give me a dict and I'm going to be stumped.

                              No records for me, only a long list of items lol

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                                if someone doesn't have experience with arrays, then they don't have enough experience with programming to hire them to program for you. they are still on page 9 of the programming book

                                mellivora@im-in.spaceM This user is from outside of this forum
                                mellivora@im-in.spaceM This user is from outside of this forum
                                mellivora@im-in.space
                                wrote last edited by
                                #34

                                @foone was confused for a minute till I saw the full thread... lol

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                                  if someone doesn't have experience with arrays, then they don't have enough experience with programming to hire them to program for you. they are still on page 9 of the programming book

                                  farhaven@mastodon.cloudF This user is from outside of this forum
                                  farhaven@mastodon.cloudF This user is from outside of this forum
                                  farhaven@mastodon.cloud
                                  wrote last edited by
                                  #35

                                  @foone Easy for you to say. I've been making do with red-black trees all this time.

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • farhaven@mastodon.cloudF This user is from outside of this forum
                                    farhaven@mastodon.cloudF This user is from outside of this forum
                                    farhaven@mastodon.cloud
                                    wrote last edited by
                                    #36

                                    @petealexharris @linear @foone Or had one of those insane managers who misread something somewhere once where some problem was caused by someone misuing an array, so they banned all array use in the whole company.

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                                      what are we even doing here man

                                      Link Preview Image
                                      h5e@tech.lgbtH This user is from outside of this forum
                                      h5e@tech.lgbtH This user is from outside of this forum
                                      h5e@tech.lgbt
                                      wrote last edited by
                                      #37

                                      @foone but do you know Keyboard (input device)?

                                      riley@toot.catR acmeworks@social.tchncs.deA 2 Replies Last reply
                                      0
                                      • revk@toot.me.ukR revk@toot.me.uk

                                        @foone reminds me of the early 80s where we got code form teachers for educational stuff. And one guy understood subroutines by not arrays. He had one that was full of
                                        IF I=1 RETURN V1
                                        IF I=2 RETURN V2
                                        …
                                        Amazing stuff.

                                        henryk@chaos.socialH This user is from outside of this forum
                                        henryk@chaos.socialH This user is from outside of this forum
                                        henryk@chaos.social
                                        wrote last edited by
                                        #38

                                        @revk @foone That is one of my memories from programming as a child. I was ~10 years old. I saw the starry night screensaver in Norton Commander and wanted a similar effect in QBasic.
                                        Lots of copy and paste later I had like 15 pairs of x,y coordinate variables (x1,y1,x2,y2,.…), a cycle counter that goes from 1 to 15, and a shitload of if then clauses: delete star at x1,y1, assign new coordinates, paint star, wait, delete star at x2, y2, etc. pp.
                                        It was awesome, but was hard to add more stars.

                                        jakobtougaard@mastodon.onlineJ 1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • foone@digipres.clubF foone@digipres.club

                                          See? Page 9. Arrays.

                                          Link Preview Image
                                          jsmuellerroemer@c.imJ This user is from outside of this forum
                                          jsmuellerroemer@c.imJ This user is from outside of this forum
                                          jsmuellerroemer@c.im
                                          wrote last edited by
                                          #39

                                          @foone I’m pretty sure I had that book

                                          llogiq@hachyderm.ioL 1 Reply Last reply
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