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Just like the "prescribed foreign language course in middle school", a bit of programming practice may widen your horizon, and help demystify these seemingly op
by rolux 13y ago
Just like the "prescribed foreign language course in middle school", a bit of programming practice may widen your horizon, and help demystify these seemingly opaque machines and networks.
It's about practice, not "knowledge" per se. Basic tasks, like: I have a folder full of files, how do I get the filenames into a text file or e-mail? Five-liners in high-level languages, the equivalent of asking for directions in a foreign tongue.
Of course, that idea comes from a time when one would own a universal computer, and own one's own data. You can argue that for many people, the filenames and text files I'm talking about are already a thing of the past, that it's all pinch and swipe, plus cloud storage.
- meowface 13y agoI would say a general computer knowledge course would serve people better than trying to learn a programming language they'll probably never use, or want to use. Basic IT, networking, security, and simple scripting would probably serve the general public best.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- Alex_MJ 13y agoA lot of it is also the mental structures you form, so you understand what a computer can and can't do easily instead of thinking it's all magic. You may not have the specific chops to write a program to do it, but you know that doing something to (x) files is just a loop with a if thingy inside of it. I think part of the "learn to code" movement is also hope that currently non-tech-literate people will learn to help themselves. Once you've googled "how do I do this in python" and found answers enough times, you (hopefully) gradually replace "All of this computer stuff is confusing! I need someone to help me with it. My cousin is good with computers. I'll call him." with "I got this shit. What up, google."
- rhizome 13y agoThe irony about your very valid benefits of having basic programming knowledge is that music programs, which have been proven to provide benefits in math and language and just general smartyhood, are the first to get their budgets cut in any given budget battle. That said, how many working people have ever had to face the problem of getting a list of filenames into an email? http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/music-arts/the-benefits-of-music-education/ http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/music-arts/the-benefits... (not my favorite source, but there are plenty of pointers to this data out there)
- aegiso 13y ago> That said, how many working people have ever had to face the problem of getting a list of filenames into an email? Few, because when tasked with a problem that this could solve, most people would immediately throw up their hands and give up. This is the biggest obstacle of all. "Which pictures are you missing?" "I don't know, I'm not going to flip through them all!"
- tmzt 13y agoOr take a series of screenshots (scrolling through the files as they go) which they then will paste into Word.
- hrrsn 13y agoAnd then they'll print it out and scan it to you. (This happens more often than I'd like to admit)
- trhaynes 13y agoOn Mac: select files, copy, switch to text area, paste. Actually, I'd be surprised if this didn't work on Windows, too...
- chii 13y agoFor this particular example, the creators of the OS has thought of the function, and implemented it. But what about a slightly different one? E.g. I have two folders, each a bunch of files. Are there any files that are not in both folders?
- elheffe80 13y agodiff -r dir1/ dir2/ edit: I did not know this- I just posted it because it is but one answer. For what it is worth, I agree with you- basic knowledge of programming is something everyone should know.
- userbinator 13y agoAnd that's something that can be done in a single line at the terminal in Windows, OS X, or *nix. Learning how to use that effectively before learning how to code would already be a big step.