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Since, astonishingly, neither full title is mentioned in the post or the comments: SICP = Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs: https://mitp-conte

Since, astonishingly, neither full title is mentioned in the post or the comments: SICP = Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs: https://mitp-content-server.mit.edu/books/content/sectbyfn/books_pres_0/6515/sicp.zip/index.html https://mitp-content-server.mit.edu/books/content/sectbyfn/b... HtDP = How to Design Programs: https://htdp.org/ https://htdp.org/ Sometimes I think gratuitous use of acronyms (initialisms for the pedants) has been the biggest impediment to learning throughout my career.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
ASalazarMX 3y ago
At least it's not as annoying as military fans, who will write whole sentences of acronyms and euphemisms, glued with the minimum of words, as if it was some secret war transmission. I think IT reached bottom when we started using numeronyms like L10n (localization) or K8s (Kubernetes).
- JohnFen 3y ago
  > I think IT reached bottom when we started using numeronyms like L10n (localization) or K8s (Kubernetes). I agree. That practice is the worst.
- mebble 3y ago
  indian news channels have entered the chat
diarrhea 3y ago
Yep. I avoid acronyms as much as possible for that reason. They are rarely worth it. An accumulated 20 seconds saved typing is not worth the eventual 3 minute hunt towards deciphering later on.
- jonsen 3y ago
  3 min × n nor (number of readers)
parentheses 3y ago
I'm not saying text should be full of acronyms/initialisms, but they serve a purpose of compressing the content. Maybe the chosen acronyms/initialisms don't work for you and that'd be a fair point.
- teh_klev 3y ago
  In good writing you should ideally use the full name of the thing you're going to abbreviate with the acronym in parenthesis after the initial "expanded" version. e.g. "My article is about How to Design Programs (HtDP)..." Then later the article: "In the HtDP book it mentions...." This makes life easier for those less familiar with the subject matter.
  - krapp 3y ago
    This is a technical forum, it's reasonable to expect readers who discuss a thread about a specific subject of interest to be familiar with the common vernacular and idioms related to that subject. If you can't understand the initialisms, maybe that's a sign that particular thread isn't for you, and that you likely have little of value to add.
    - omnicognate 3y ago
      I've read SICP cover to cover and completed every exercise, so I recognised that one. I had to look HtDP up.
    - teh_klev 3y ago
      This is a rather short sighted and somewhat gate keeping mentality. Acronyms are often contrived and separate from the common vernacular and idioms related to a subject matter. As a software developer with a forty year career behind me I'm quite familiar with the "SICP" book. But for some reason my brain won't persist the connection between the full title and the SICP acronym when I bump into it. Yet somehow I can recall what each and every assembly language mnemonic means across a fairly broad range of micro and mini computer processors. > maybe that's a sign that particular thread isn't for you, and that you likely have little of value to add. Sure I may not have much to add, but the reason to read a thread, article or essay is to become familiar with the subject matter because it sounds interesting. Don't assume your reader is an expert in decoding your special and often made up acronyms.
JohnFen 3y ago
Thank you for this. I was wondering.
bloopernova 3y ago
thank you Acronyms and initialisms with no explanation are passive aggressive gatekeeping.
nine_k 3y ago
Some things just become so well-known and ingrained in the culture (in certain circles) that writing them out fully feels excessively long, especially when mentioned several times in a conversation. Most software engineers do not expand abbreviations like RAM or GPU or RDBMS. OTOH it's really important to spell them out at a right time, to help people not yet in the know understand them. So thank you!

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

ASalazarMX 3y ago

At least it's not as annoying as military fans, who will write whole sentences of acronyms and euphemisms, glued with the minimum of words, as if it was some secret war transmission. I think IT reached bottom when we started using numeronyms like L10n (localization) or K8s (Kubernetes).

JohnFen 3y ago
> I think IT reached bottom when we started using numeronyms like L10n (localization) or K8s (Kubernetes). I agree. That practice is the worst.
mebble 3y ago
indian news channels have entered the chat

diarrhea 3y ago

Yep. I avoid acronyms as much as possible for that reason. They are rarely worth it. An accumulated 20 seconds saved typing is not worth the eventual 3 minute hunt towards deciphering later on.

jonsen 3y ago
3 min × n nor (number of readers)

parentheses 3y ago

I'm not saying text should be full of acronyms/initialisms, but they serve a purpose of compressing the content. Maybe the chosen acronyms/initialisms don't work for you and that'd be a fair point.

teh_klev 3y ago
In good writing you should ideally use the full name of the thing you're going to abbreviate with the acronym in parenthesis after the initial "expanded" version. e.g. "My article is about How to Design Programs (HtDP)..." Then later the article: "In the HtDP book it mentions...." This makes life easier for those less familiar with the subject matter.
- krapp 3y ago
  This is a technical forum, it's reasonable to expect readers who discuss a thread about a specific subject of interest to be familiar with the common vernacular and idioms related to that subject. If you can't understand the initialisms, maybe that's a sign that particular thread isn't for you, and that you likely have little of value to add.
  - omnicognate 3y ago
    I've read SICP cover to cover and completed every exercise, so I recognised that one. I had to look HtDP up.
  - teh_klev 3y ago
    This is a rather short sighted and somewhat gate keeping mentality. Acronyms are often contrived and separate from the common vernacular and idioms related to a subject matter. As a software developer with a forty year career behind me I'm quite familiar with the "SICP" book. But for some reason my brain won't persist the connection between the full title and the SICP acronym when I bump into it. Yet somehow I can recall what each and every assembly language mnemonic means across a fairly broad range of micro and mini computer processors. > maybe that's a sign that particular thread isn't for you, and that you likely have little of value to add. Sure I may not have much to add, but the reason to read a thread, article or essay is to become familiar with the subject matter because it sounds interesting. Don't assume your reader is an expert in decoding your special and often made up acronyms.

JohnFen 3y ago

Thank you for this. I was wondering.

bloopernova 3y ago

thank you Acronyms and initialisms with no explanation are passive aggressive gatekeeping.

nine_k 3y ago

Some things just become so well-known and ingrained in the culture (in certain circles) that writing them out fully feels excessively long, especially when mentioned several times in a conversation. Most software engineers do not expand abbreviations like RAM or GPU or RDBMS. OTOH it's really important to spell them out at a right time, to help people not yet in the know understand them. So thank you!