9 ms·
That's the problem I have when making a toy project from scratch in order to learn a technique (be it databases, blockchain, or deep learning). I'm always wonde
by ghgr 7y ago
That's the problem I have when making a toy project from scratch in order to learn a technique (be it databases, blockchain, or deep learning). I'm always wondering if I'm allowed to use such algorithm or clone such github repo. Or if copy/pasting an auxiliary function is cheating or not.
To avoid such moral dilemmas I try to come up with projects that solve a new problem (which also comes with its own set of challenges). And then use all the means at my disposal.
As a bonus it also keeps me motivated, since it has a shot at being a profitable business idea.
- WilliamEdward 7y agoThe whole crux is that it's 'cheating' if you don't actually understand the tools. So long as you don't run into any problems where not understanding an algorithm stops your entire development process, who really cares?
- smitty1e 7y agoI mean, I took a graduate level Biochemistry course and got destroyed. Nevertheless, I fathered two children.
- huffmsa 7y agoGreen lumber fallacy. You don't need to know much of anything about lumber and trees to be a good commodities trader. Likewise, you don't need to know the exact algorithmic details of something if you're still achieving your desired outcomes. If you're not getting the outcome you want, you need to dig deeper into the components you don't fully understand to get them to perform as expected. Real life results are best judged on metrics one step removed from the work.
- allenrb 7y agoMy favorite quote from work, somewhat apropos: “I know people making good money trading corn who would be shocked to learn that it’s a plant.”
- JustSomeNobody 7y agoUse anything you want from GitHub. Once you have something working start removing what you got from GitHub.