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I've been regularly coding in C for 30+ years. The language has evolved, the behavior on what you can do "to be dangerous" depends on the architecture, as oppo

I've been regularly coding in C for 30+ years. The language has evolved, the behavior on what you can do "to be dangerous" depends on the architecture, as opposed to the things you can do "to be dumb". Do I consider myself an expert, no. A pro? No. Libraries, processors, application being built always expose challenges and things to be aware of. This is why I take exception with the phrasing of "Pro" based off of a reading list.

stephengillie 10y ago
Back in my day, "Pro" meant Professional, as in one who earns their living doing this.
- jmspring 10y ago
  A language caters to an ecosystem. Most ecosystems change and unless you are continually learning, the definition of "pro" becomes ambiguous. Despite who my employer is, I know much more about the internals and libraries associated with BSD and Linux related programming in the language of "C" than I do Win. Where do I declare myself an expert? "stdlib"? "stdio"? And so forth. I'm continually a student in the areas that pop up that interest me (and the ones I wish to maintain).
  - deleted 10y ago
    [deleted]
melvinmt 10y ago
Pro doesn't stand for Professor or anything. If you have 30 years of experience with something, then generally speaking, you're a pro.
- sillysaurus3 10y ago
  There's little upside in thinking of yourself as a pro. The upside is in aspiring to be a pro: attention to detail, questioning your choices, actively seeking the edge of your field, putting in the time to practice, and so on. Those who aspire to be a pro are more likely to have these qualities, whereas pros tend to assume they do.
  - kstenerud 10y ago
    On the contrary; it's a very GOOD idea to think of yourself as a pro. A good professional takes pride in his work, and aspires to improve his craft. False modesty gets you nowhere.
    - sillysaurus3 10y ago
      To clarify, I'm not referring to the image that society forces you to project. It's obviously a bad idea to claim incompetence. That said, are you sure it's a good idea to remove modesty from your mind? It seems like more have fallen to pride than were lost to modesty.
      - kstenerud 10y ago
        Not in my experience.

stephengillie 10y ago

Back in my day, "Pro" meant Professional, as in one who earns their living doing this.

jmspring 10y ago
A language caters to an ecosystem. Most ecosystems change and unless you are continually learning, the definition of "pro" becomes ambiguous. Despite who my employer is, I know much more about the internals and libraries associated with BSD and Linux related programming in the language of "C" than I do Win. Where do I declare myself an expert? "stdlib"? "stdio"? And so forth. I'm continually a student in the areas that pop up that interest me (and the ones I wish to maintain).
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]

melvinmt 10y ago

Pro doesn't stand for Professor or anything. If you have 30 years of experience with something, then generally speaking, you're a pro.

sillysaurus3 10y ago
There's little upside in thinking of yourself as a pro. The upside is in aspiring to be a pro: attention to detail, questioning your choices, actively seeking the edge of your field, putting in the time to practice, and so on. Those who aspire to be a pro are more likely to have these qualities, whereas pros tend to assume they do.
- kstenerud 10y ago
  On the contrary; it's a very GOOD idea to think of yourself as a pro. A good professional takes pride in his work, and aspires to improve his craft. False modesty gets you nowhere.
  - sillysaurus3 10y ago
    To clarify, I'm not referring to the image that society forces you to project. It's obviously a bad idea to claim incompetence. That said, are you sure it's a good idea to remove modesty from your mind? It seems like more have fallen to pride than were lost to modesty.
    - kstenerud 10y ago
      Not in my experience.