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I began programming in 1968. 50 years later I can't think of anything I'm nostalgic about. There were some OK to Good times, but nothing stands out. I'd rathe

I began programming in 1968. 50 years later I can't think of anything I'm nostalgic about. There were some OK to Good times, but nothing stands out. I'd rather have done something else. I do recall first reading Tog's edition of Macintosh User Interface Guidelines as opening up my perspective. For lack of anything else I'd choose it.

api_or_ipa 9y ago
I'm curious to hear about your 50 year career spanning some of the most important revolutions in computer history. What do you work on now, and how does it compare to what you worked on it 1968? How did people such as yourself get into computing in 1968? What was the availability of computers and what rules dictated human participation with computers? What improvement was the biggest leap forward? Where there any 'winters' you felt where innovation became dormant, stagnated or even declined?
- oldmancoyote 9y ago
  At the time I started, you couldn't get a degree in software engineering. "Software Engineering" wasn't even a thing. I took a course in programming for geologists just before I flunked out of Stanford. Later, I took an evening course in Pascal. Even later I took Stanford's online course in iOS programming. Whenever some new concept came out, the hardware/systems vendors had to prime the pump by educating everyone with manuals. Every new thing was so obviously superior, one eagerly sought books, magazine articles, or manuals to get on board. We all hauled ourselves up by our boot straps. It was an exciting time. Back then computers filled huge rooms, and time was allocated by the second. "Nobody" knew how to program then, so it was easy to get a job programming for a contractor at NASA-Ames and later for the U.S.G.S. The first thing I ever did was a FORTRAN IV program that contoured simulated lunar regolith data. These maps were crude line-printer maps with each character representing a depth. The last major thing I did before I left the U.S.G.S. was an interactive color geologic map integrated with an ore-deposit database. That was about 1989. Since I left the U.S.G.S. in 1995, I've done website programming and "side projects." I'm currently working on a word processor for professionals engaged in a major writing project, one involving lots of source documents and notes. Like most side projects, the biggest problem is marketing. I suppose everyone else would point to PCs as the greatest innovation. I disagree. For me it was the hugely powerful APIs Apple provided with the Mac. Before, you had to create nearly everything from scratch. It was revolutionary. As an application-programmer, the Mac's APIs were hugely empowering. I could now do things it would have taken a team a year or more to do. I realize C is very popular and I mean no offense, but I hate it. It's prominence grates on my nerves. It's lack of discipline appeals to the worst emotionally immature tendencies among very young programmers and can lead to life-long bad habits. That is the perspective of an scientific-application programmer. I'm sure the world seems very different for folks focused on systems etc where C has advantages. This has been rather long, but there were lots of questions to address. Thanks for the opportunity.
  - api_or_ipa 9y ago
    I really interested reading your comment. Thanks for sharing your experiences, I hope other users also found your comment enlightening.
willbw 9y ago
Can I ask, what would you have rather done?
- oldmancoyote 9y ago
  Contrary to popular belief, hind-sight is even more muddled and confused than the present : ) I really wanted to be an archeologist, but I thought it was too impractical. In general I was too "practical" in my life choices. I wish I had at least tried vagabonding at bit combined with writing, looking for something - adventure or I don't know what. That, however, it probably naive. Real world choices were much more difficult and uncertain and my memory is inadequate.

api_or_ipa 9y ago

I'm curious to hear about your 50 year career spanning some of the most important revolutions in computer history. What do you work on now, and how does it compare to what you worked on it 1968? How did people such as yourself get into computing in 1968? What was the availability of computers and what rules dictated human participation with computers? What improvement was the biggest leap forward? Where there any 'winters' you felt where innovation became dormant, stagnated or even declined?

oldmancoyote 9y ago
At the time I started, you couldn't get a degree in software engineering. "Software Engineering" wasn't even a thing. I took a course in programming for geologists just before I flunked out of Stanford. Later, I took an evening course in Pascal. Even later I took Stanford's online course in iOS programming. Whenever some new concept came out, the hardware/systems vendors had to prime the pump by educating everyone with manuals. Every new thing was so obviously superior, one eagerly sought books, magazine articles, or manuals to get on board. We all hauled ourselves up by our boot straps. It was an exciting time. Back then computers filled huge rooms, and time was allocated by the second. "Nobody" knew how to program then, so it was easy to get a job programming for a contractor at NASA-Ames and later for the U.S.G.S. The first thing I ever did was a FORTRAN IV program that contoured simulated lunar regolith data. These maps were crude line-printer maps with each character representing a depth. The last major thing I did before I left the U.S.G.S. was an interactive color geologic map integrated with an ore-deposit database. That was about 1989. Since I left the U.S.G.S. in 1995, I've done website programming and "side projects." I'm currently working on a word processor for professionals engaged in a major writing project, one involving lots of source documents and notes. Like most side projects, the biggest problem is marketing. I suppose everyone else would point to PCs as the greatest innovation. I disagree. For me it was the hugely powerful APIs Apple provided with the Mac. Before, you had to create nearly everything from scratch. It was revolutionary. As an application-programmer, the Mac's APIs were hugely empowering. I could now do things it would have taken a team a year or more to do. I realize C is very popular and I mean no offense, but I hate it. It's prominence grates on my nerves. It's lack of discipline appeals to the worst emotionally immature tendencies among very young programmers and can lead to life-long bad habits. That is the perspective of an scientific-application programmer. I'm sure the world seems very different for folks focused on systems etc where C has advantages. This has been rather long, but there were lots of questions to address. Thanks for the opportunity.
- api_or_ipa 9y ago
  I really interested reading your comment. Thanks for sharing your experiences, I hope other users also found your comment enlightening.

willbw 9y ago

Can I ask, what would you have rather done?

oldmancoyote 9y ago
Contrary to popular belief, hind-sight is even more muddled and confused than the present : ) I really wanted to be an archeologist, but I thought it was too impractical. In general I was too "practical" in my life choices. I wish I had at least tried vagabonding at bit combined with writing, looking for something - adventure or I don't know what. That, however, it probably naive. Real world choices were much more difficult and uncertain and my memory is inadequate.