3 ms·

i think you're over-estimating the abilities of the average cs grad if you believe they all understand compilers.

by hubb 16y ago

philwelch 16y ago
Unfortunately, Compilers is no longer a required class to get a CS degree. My (possibly flawed) understanding is that in the heyday, it was. It's really a shame, because learning about compilers applies all that stuff you're supposed to learn about languages and automata theory, gives you an excellent example of how to design a large software system, gives you insights into programming language design, and above all demystifies the process of what happens when you compile your own code.
- WalterGR 16y ago
  Unfortunately, Compilers is no longer a required class to get a CS degree. As with all degrees, that depends entirely on the school.
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
  - philwelch 16y ago
    I meant in the average case.
    - WalterGR 16y ago
      Do you have data?
    - baddox 16y ago
      What about in the worst case?
      - philwelch 16y ago
        In the worst case, you can go to a school that doesn't offer compilers. My school offers but doesn't require it. It would be interesting to discover the earliest CS program at a reputable university without a compilers requirement.
- baddox 16y ago
  My university requires a class called "Languages and Machines." According to the instructor, it used to be two classes, "Languages" and "Computation." We started doing some language fundamentals and comparative analysis of different languages (how basic data types are implemented, structs, closures, etc.). Then we talked about various function calling conventions, beginning with a simple stack machine language and slowly building on that to support recursive calls, etc. By the end, every passing student had written non-trivial programs in at least 3 different languages, and written very simple yet enlightening implementations of the basic components of compilers (lexer/parser, AST, code generation, basic optimization, etc.). I would've preferred a full-blown compilers course, but that class was still my favorite CS class.
scrrr 16y ago
I think they should? After all it is not that much that justifies the "s" in "cs"..
- adatta02 16y ago
  Compilers was one of the few classes where I thought the S actually met the C in CS. I applied real algorithms I'd learned in Algorithm and data structures I had learned in Data Structures to support the theory of computation I had learned in The Theory of Computation.

i think you're over-estimating the abilities of the average cs grad if you believe they all understand compilers.

by hubb 16y ago

i think you're over-estimating the abilities of the average cs grad if you believe they all understand compilers.

Unfortunately, Compilers is no longer a required class to get a CS degree. My (possibly flawed) understanding is that in the heyday, it was. It's really a shame, because learning about compilers applies all that stuff you're supposed to learn about languages and automata theory, gives you an excellent example of how to design a large software system, gives you insights into programming language design, and above all demystifies the process of what happens when you compile your own code.

WalterGR 16y ago
Unfortunately, Compilers is no longer a required class to get a CS degree. As with all degrees, that depends entirely on the school.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- philwelch 16y ago
  I meant in the average case.
  - WalterGR 16y ago
    Do you have data?
  - baddox 16y ago
    What about in the worst case?
    - philwelch 16y ago
      In the worst case, you can go to a school that doesn't offer compilers. My school offers but doesn't require it. It would be interesting to discover the earliest CS program at a reputable university without a compilers requirement.
baddox 16y ago
My university requires a class called "Languages and Machines." According to the instructor, it used to be two classes, "Languages" and "Computation." We started doing some language fundamentals and comparative analysis of different languages (how basic data types are implemented, structs, closures, etc.). Then we talked about various function calling conventions, beginning with a simple stack machine language and slowly building on that to support recursive calls, etc. By the end, every passing student had written non-trivial programs in at least 3 different languages, and written very simple yet enlightening implementations of the basic components of compilers (lexer/parser, AST, code generation, basic optimization, etc.). I would've preferred a full-blown compilers course, but that class was still my favorite CS class.

scrrr 16y ago

I think they should? After all it is not that much that justifies the "s" in "cs"..

adatta02 16y ago
Compilers was one of the few classes where I thought the S actually met the C in CS. I applied real algorithms I'd learned in Algorithm and data structures I had learned in Data Structures to support the theory of computation I had learned in The Theory of Computation.