I think what you wrote is a terrific start, if you can share it with them in what you think is a safe manner. For example, while we know what Hacker News is, w

I think what you wrote is a terrific start, if you can share it with them in what you think is a safe manner. For example, while we know what Hacker News is, would seeing that name at the top of this page scare them before they took the time to learn the context (or even read what you wrote)? I'd be quite happy if I had a 15 year old son with such an interest and who could express it so well. And who also apparently has a healthy social life and life beyond just programming. I wish some of the "big names" on here would make a comment. Your parents might "get it" a bit more if they saw pg, "the creator" of Gmail, and the like speaking up with an encouraging word. Wishing you luck, in any event. And, difficult as it may be, convincing your parents may well be good practice for making effective arguments, on many and varied topics, in the future. As an alternative, get a few appropriate sound tracks and them you're really into creating electronic music? ;-) -- P.S. What about buying a printed copy of pg's book, "Hackers and Painters", and seeing whether you can get your parents to read it? The essays its based on are available individually, here. (The book is, as I understand it, a subset of these.) http://www.paulgraham.com/articles.html http://www.paulgraham.com/articles.html