4 ms·

I have been the victim of sponge learning for many years now, HN being part of it for about a year. I can talk about a wide range of techy subjects but I've nev

by schme 15y ago

I have been the victim of sponge learning for many years now, HN being part of it for about a year. I can talk about a wide range of techy subjects but I've never really made or done anything to show for it. I learn bits from here and there without never going very deep. I've read through (and done most of the exercises from) K&R and Dive Into Python to name a couple, yet I haven't written a project over 500 LOC. I've loved technology as long as I can remember, but when it comes to my local circles I've always been alone with it. Sponge learning is great and (as the writer mentioned) it deduces the amount of unknown unknowns, but without peer encouragement or -at least- approval it's very difficult to actually do something with it. My sincere respect for everyone who has done something with their passions (that includes you alexmr!)

capnbuzzword 15y ago
I just had to register to comment on this one. Wow, that struck a chord. Pretty much every sentence rings true, especially the peer encouragement one. For me it's the availability of easier entertainment - why write that python bookmark creation date histogram plotter, when I'm tired and can just waste the evening reading Reddit? Oh, and there's the procrastination habit I've been nursing for over a decade. On the other hand, having someone as a sounding board to bounce ideas off, and additionally to guard me from going off tangents and getting distracted - that helps make some progress. Have you scouted around for a local hackerspace (http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/List_of_Hacker_Spaces http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/List_of_Hacker_Spaces)? I did, but I'm using the language barrier (expat) and some leftover social anxiety as excuses to not pursue that road. All else aside, would you be interested in starting a sort of a study group - just a place one can post their ideas and have others provide brainstorming, feedback and motivation? I think that may work - I remember my most productive streaks were when a friend had an issue to solve and I would swoop in on the opportunity to help. When faced with a similar issue of my own, I would endlessly procrastinate and often fail. If others have also experienced similar situations, creating such a space to facilitate pair programming could increase everyone's productivity.
- gtani 15y ago
  There's also hack nights in meetup.com and other sites where you basically announce your project/problem/ or just a snippet you need to write and find a pair. Check out resources like scala-user, which is designated newbie-friendly, railsbridge.org and codereview.stackexchange.com. http://www.scala-lang.org/node/199 http://www.scala-lang.org/node/199 Also relevant: remote pairing tools http://blog.tridgell.net/?p=111 http://blog.tridgell.net/?p=111 http://blog.coryfoy.com/2010/08/technically-distributed-tools-and-techniques-for-distributed-teams/ http://blog.coryfoy.com/2010/08/technically-distributed-tool... http://www.smashingapps.com/2011/01/10/7-coolest-real-time-collaboration-web-apps-you-might-not-know-about-but-should.html http://www.smashingapps.com/2011/01/10/7-coolest-real-time-c...
- schme 15y ago
  I had searched for hackerspaces but found none. Now there is one, searching for members. I will sign up shortly! Would you mind dropping me an email about the study group? We could start working on one, make that its first project.

by schme 15y ago

capnbuzzword 15y ago

I just had to register to comment on this one. Wow, that struck a chord. Pretty much every sentence rings true, especially the peer encouragement one. For me it's the availability of easier entertainment - why write that python bookmark creation date histogram plotter, when I'm tired and can just waste the evening reading Reddit? Oh, and there's the procrastination habit I've been nursing for over a decade. On the other hand, having someone as a sounding board to bounce ideas off, and additionally to guard me from going off tangents and getting distracted - that helps make some progress. Have you scouted around for a local hackerspace (http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/List_of_Hacker_Spaces http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/List_of_Hacker_Spaces)? I did, but I'm using the language barrier (expat) and some leftover social anxiety as excuses to not pursue that road. All else aside, would you be interested in starting a sort of a study group - just a place one can post their ideas and have others provide brainstorming, feedback and motivation? I think that may work - I remember my most productive streaks were when a friend had an issue to solve and I would swoop in on the opportunity to help. When faced with a similar issue of my own, I would endlessly procrastinate and often fail. If others have also experienced similar situations, creating such a space to facilitate pair programming could increase everyone's productivity.

gtani 15y ago
There's also hack nights in meetup.com and other sites where you basically announce your project/problem/ or just a snippet you need to write and find a pair. Check out resources like scala-user, which is designated newbie-friendly, railsbridge.org and codereview.stackexchange.com. http://www.scala-lang.org/node/199 http://www.scala-lang.org/node/199 Also relevant: remote pairing tools http://blog.tridgell.net/?p=111 http://blog.tridgell.net/?p=111 http://blog.coryfoy.com/2010/08/technically-distributed-tools-and-techniques-for-distributed-teams/ http://blog.coryfoy.com/2010/08/technically-distributed-tool... http://www.smashingapps.com/2011/01/10/7-coolest-real-time-collaboration-web-apps-you-might-not-know-about-but-should.html http://www.smashingapps.com/2011/01/10/7-coolest-real-time-c...
schme 15y ago
I had searched for hackerspaces but found none. Now there is one, searching for members. I will sign up shortly! Would you mind dropping me an email about the study group? We could start working on one, make that its first project.