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> This is why I don't believe in computer science degrees. Computer science degrees aren't about learning a computer language; they're a ramp to learning about

• sophacles 15y ago
  Exactly, the language I programed while I learned about basic data structures (java) has changed a quite a bit since 1998, but the linked list is still the same. So are recursion, and the binary tree, and a dozen other simple concepts from that class. Similarly, I don't touch C++ or Oracle databases any more, but I still understand joins and how to go over data (fairly) efficiently - those really haven't changed either. If anything, I wish they had used a simpler language, and as a result gotten rid of the wasted hours of going over the languages (except maybe one in depth language course in something like java or C), and instead put more general problem solving (and solutions) into the material. That stuff is invaluable.
  • mjmahone 15y ago
    But surely, you don't expect to actually use trees and recursion in your actual projects? All you need to be a good programmer is to take the libraries someone else has developed, and like websites of yore, cut and paste what you need into your own projects. Right?
• kylemaxwell 15y ago
  Even deeper than that, computer science is about the theory behind computation and what we can discover & create with it. Or, as Dijkstra said, "Computer science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes." Computers are a tool for this discipline, and programming is a way to manipulate and control that tool. If all somebody wants to do is sling code, CS is even more than they need. But they probably will want to do more than that someday, so the foundations of CS can serve them well.