3 ms·

I suspect I'm not unique in the fact that I don't learn languages for the sake of learning languages - I learn languages because they're typically better for th

by CHY872 12y ago

I suspect I'm not unique in the fact that I don't learn languages for the sake of learning languages - I learn languages because they're typically better for the task that I want to do than the tools that I'm currently using. Some people learn languages for fun, some learn them to be productive - I have never successfully managed to learn a language without some kind of real-world motivation, and have never met someone who has (by learn, I mean a software project of a thousand or more lines - my standards are not too high).

sanderjd 12y ago
Yeah, I very much enjoy learning languages just for fun, but it's a bit of a catch-22 - to really learn a language I find I need to do something "real" with it, and upon doing something "real" I find that the language is no longer quite so much fun. But I do think that broad superficial knowledge helps inform decisions about which narrower set of things to pursue deeper knowledge in.