6 ms·
It is becoming quite popular (or maybe it was always the case?) that someone learning some topic and at the same time writing a book about it. Interesting how i
by zerr 10y ago
It is becoming quite popular (or maybe it was always the case?) that someone learning some topic and at the same time writing a book about it. Interesting how it affects the quality of the content (versus books authored by persons with expertise in given topics).
- Philipp__ 10y agoI tend not to put those two "kinds" of books in same category. I read them with hope to achieve different goals. They aren't read in the same way, but I think that is normal considering those two types.
- happy-go-lucky 10y agoMy belief is that writing about a topic that one is trying to come to grips with helps ensure they achieve the best possible learning outcomes.
- zerr 10y agoThe best learning outcomes for the author I believe. But I'm more interested in the prospective reader's PoV.
- tonyedgecombe 10y agoI think it's probably both, once you know a subject well it's easy to take some of that knowledge for granted. If you have just learnt it then you probably have a little more empathy for the reader.
- misternugget 10y agoI recently read a comment (I think it might have been on HN, but I can't find it) that said something like this: if you recently learned/mastered a topic, you're in a far better position to teach that topic than an expert, who's so deep into it, that they can't understand the beginners. I wish I could find the source for this, because it was much better put, but that comment contains the gist of my motivation behind writing the book.
- msie 10y agoCompletely agree. Currently reading a book authored by the creator of a framework and having a hard time of it. So many newbie questions. There is extra stuff I don't need to know as a beginner - put that in another book or another section. Don't interleave it with the basic material. There is stuff that make assumptions that I am an expert in the language, the code needs to be fully explained, line by line.
- thewhitetulip 10y agoI wrote a book in this light, https://github.com/thewhitetulip/web-dev-golang-anti-textbook/ https://github.com/thewhitetulip/web-dev-golang-anti-textboo... Feel free to let me know your feedback!
- andrewbinstock 10y agoThe great benefit of experts over I-just-learned-this authors is that experts know how design x or feature y relates to other designs and features not implemented in the given project. In other words, they know a lot more context and can tell whether something that appears totally normal in the project is actually done in an unusual way that has limitations, etc.
- metalon 10y agoThat is what is well-done in the Haskell book imho, the combination of someone just learning everything and an experienced programmer
- fnord123 10y agoThe comment is probably correct. There is a concept called "the curse of knowledge" which is basically the same issue.
- happy-go-lucky 10y ago> if you recently learned/mastered a topic, you're in a far better position to teach that topic than an expert, who's so deep into it, that they can't understand the beginners. Most experts I come across are generous when it comes to sharing what they know and their generosity may sometimes get in the way of a beginner's learning, but this is not always the case.
- doh 10y agoMy subjective opinion is that a reader would learn more from a person that went to discover a new topic and wrote down the steps and knowledge acquired along the way. The reader is essentially taking the same steps, learning the same things. If however an expert would write about the same topic, she will have hard time to follow the same pattern. I believe that J.K. Rowling used the same pattern for her Harry Potter books. She started writing them for children and then each book followed the same kids to their adulthood.
- iwintermute 10y agoI think it's worse for the reader. Experience gives you "undocumented" knowledge - for example, knowledge of how system behaves under real load and what bottlenecks are and what are other limitations of particular architecture.
- mmjaa 10y agoI believe it was always the case. I can remember books just like this in the 70's and 80's, teaching one how to write a Pascal interpreter in C, or then a GUI system in Turbo Pascal, for example, which felt very much like this kind of introduction/tutorial to both the language, and the application of the language itself to an interesting component. Is this a Go book or a Monkey/Interpreter book? Its neither, but both.
- logingone 10y agoI think you've misread the comment, unless I'm misreading yours.
- daenney 10y ago> Interesting how it affects the quality of the content (versus books authored by persons with expertise in given topics). How does it affect the quality? Based on what criteria and examples (ideally specifically related to this book and field)?
- Jun8 10y ago"You teach best what you most need to learn."