What do you do ?

[Spikebolt]

Full Stack web developer here! I am the best developer in a Geomarketing startup company (aka the only one)

[rsbseb]

Retired Architect, who has owned a few side businesses over the last twenty some years.(restaurant, injection molding, construction management,and taxi company)

Hobbies include vehicle fabrication, gardening, cooking, poultry (I raise chickens, ducks, and quail), and now KEYBOARDS.

I have a pretty diverse background because I am one of those who cant get enough info into my head. I guess I'm a little bit like a chicken who gets easily distracted by every little bug that crosses it's path. Luckily I am married to a wonderful woman who puts up with my various distractions.

Most of my hobbies and activities revolve around some sort of design work. I am a designer at heart and am always creating something in my mind or by my hand when I see an opportunity to do so. I even designed a casket for my mother last year when she passed away.

[eldorange]

I majored in Economics, Politics and History in college...

I have a Master's degree in Modern Korean History and studied Korean Language (never improved) in Yonsei, Seoul
and minor interest in Korean custom keyboards (although I don't own one)...

dabbled into Law School...

my hobby was collecting novels (more than 200/300) ...stopped now...after realizing I can't understand Ulysses...can't finish Remembrance of Things Past...can't start reading Gravity's Rainbow

interested in computers since High School, got hooked into keyboard lately after watching hundreds of keyboard youtube videos...

[jou]

Software Developer here. Went through the whole stack from C to Delphi, Objective-C, Java, Ruby/PHP, HTML/CSS/JavaScript (not in that order though). Currently, I'm mostly doing web development with PHP and everything that runs in the Browser. I also do basic sysadmin stuff to keeps the things running I'm making.

Got into the whole keyboard shebang after seeing someone's ErgoDox on Twitter. I decided to build one myself and got into the time and money sink of a hobby that keyboards are.

Since I haven't introduced myself yet, I'll take the opportunity to say: "Hi everyone!"

[Redmaus]

Software Developer here. Went through the whole stack from C to Delphi, Objective-C, Java, Ruby/PHP, HTML/CSS/JavaScript (not in that order though). Currently, I'm mostly doing web development with PHP and everything that runs in the Browser. I also do basic sysadmin stuff to keeps the things running I'm making.

Got into the whole keyboard shebang after seeing someone's ErgoDox on Twitter. I decided to build one myself and got into the time and money sink of a hobby that keyboards are.

Since I haven't introduced myself yet, I'll take the opportunity to say: "Hi everyone!"

Welcome to DT!

If you don't mind from your view as a software developer, is it a good idea to learn multiple coding languages? I am considering becoming a developer and wondering which code would be best to learn of if I should learn more than one language. I am only a freshman in highschool, was going to learn a language this summer, only know a bit of java from my schools compsci class.

[scottc]

Software Developer here. Went through the whole stack from C to Delphi, Objective-C, Java, Ruby/PHP, HTML/CSS/JavaScript (not in that order though). Currently, I'm mostly doing web development with PHP and everything that runs in the Browser. I also do basic sysadmin stuff to keeps the things running I'm making.

Got into the whole keyboard shebang after seeing someone's ErgoDox on Twitter. I decided to build one myself and got into the time and money sink of a hobby that keyboards are.

Since I haven't introduced myself yet, I'll take the opportunity to say: "Hi everyone!"

Welcome to DT!

If you don't mind from your view as a software developer, is it a good idea to learn multiple coding languages? I am considering becoming a developer and wondering which code would be best to learn of if I should learn more than one language. I am only a freshman in highschool, was going to learn a language this summer, only know a bit of java from my schools compsci class.

Definitely. If you want to learn something elegant and useful, check out "Learn Python the Hard Way". Highly recommend it.

[Redmaus]

Definitely. If you want to learn something elegant and useful, check out "Learn Python the Hard Way". Highly recommend it.

So I should start with python and move on from there?

[scottc]

Doesn't really matter what you start with, it's more about the abstract concepts of programming. Python has a low barrier to entry and is pretty easy to pick up, which is why I recommend it. If you know a little Java, you'll likely pick up Python quite quickly.

[SL89]

rsbseb is your avatar in deseret or some other script?

[jou]

@Redmaus I second that it's not important what language you start with. The fundamentals are quite transferable to other languages. Pick whatever you think is most appealing to you. The single most important thing in learning programming is having a problem you want solved.

[Spikebolt]

Software Developer here. Went through the whole stack from C to Delphi, Objective-C, Java, Ruby/PHP, HTML/CSS/JavaScript (not in that order though). Currently, I'm mostly doing web development with PHP and everything that runs in the Browser. I also do basic sysadmin stuff to keeps the things running I'm making.

Got into the whole keyboard shebang after seeing someone's ErgoDox on Twitter. I decided to build one myself and got into the time and money sink of a hobby that keyboards are.

Since I haven't introduced myself yet, I'll take the opportunity to say: "Hi everyone!"

Welcome to DT!

If you don't mind from your view as a software developer, is it a good idea to learn multiple coding languages? I am considering becoming a developer and wondering which code would be best to learn of if I should learn more than one language. I am only a freshman in highschool, was going to learn a language this summer, only know a bit of java from my schools compsci class.

In my personal opinion, in this high level world where "everything" has a garbage collector the language you choose is secondary. The best way to improve your skills is to develop side-projects, one that you enjoy doing. Some keyboard related application, maybe.

However, it's always cool to know languages that solve different kind of problems. If you already master Java there's not much point in learning C#, for instance. It accomplishes the same thing. Maybe you should try Scala instead

Language is secondary, what you need is reasoning.

[amospalla]

I am also on the IT world, on a hosting company doing system administration tasks. At work I am known as somebody who enjoys doing his work, the weird guy who everyday when arrives work opens his little bag where he carries the keyboard and trackball.

[XMIT]

Says you. Some of us work well below any garbage collectors and closer to the hardware. I do think that at some point all programmers should be forced to think through memory allocation the hard way to better understand why some operations are so slow or dangerous. Granted I say this as a C programmer.

Way on the other side of the spectrum pure functional languages like Haskell are another great mental exercise. Since both are Turing complete anything expressible in one is expressible in the other, though perhaps not as efficiently.

My university's intro programming class moved from Scheme (a LISP variant) to Python a few years ago. I second scottc's suggestion of working through Python The Hard Way. It could be a nice way to spend a summer break. At some point you just have to pick something and Python is a good choice. Add on libraries like NumPy and SciPy let you tackle all sorts of problems (slowly).

My only gripe with Python is that different versions of the language differ so much. So pick one version and stick with it at least for starters.

I picked up Apple BASIC in elementary school and started coding in C++ in high school. Since I work so close to hardware I'm a C programmer these days, some C++.

[Mal-2]

I also have a diploma in music performance and practice which is about as useful and worthless as it sounds .

One of the great things about music as a profession is that, so far as jobs exist, it is a meritocracy. Where you went to school or what degrees you hold may get your foot in the door, but in the end it's all about whether you can perform or not.

The bad sides of this are that there are some real jerks out there that you have to work with, because they really are the best at what they do, and that there aren't that many jobs so you keep running into those jerks over and over again, if you get any work at all.

[Spikebolt]

Says you. Some of us work well below any garbage collectors and closer to the hardware.

Thus the quotes on the "everything"

[XMIT]

Says you. Some of us work well below any garbage collectors and closer to the hardware.

Thus the quotes on the "everything"

Yeah. http://xkcd.com/297 comes to mind.

Lisp Cycles

[rsbseb]

rsbseb is your avatar in deseret or some other script?

Yes it is in Deseret... another hobby I guess

[HzFaq]

I also have a diploma in music performance and practice which is about as useful and worthless as it sounds .

One of the great things about music as a profession is that, so far as jobs exist, it is a meritocracy. Where you went to school or what degrees you hold may get your foot in the door, but in the end it's all about whether you can perform or not.

The bad sides of this are that there are some real jerks out there that you have to work with, because they really are the best at what they do, and that there aren't that many jobs so you keep running into those jerks over and over again, if you get any work at all.

I tried getting jobs at a few rehersal rooms and studios close to the college, but of course they had all the graduates they would ever need, being so close to the college so it was basically impossible. I knew a couple of people and they let me sit in on some sessions and what not but after about 6 months of ringing around without getting anywhere I went part time at a bar and spent my days off trying to get studio time in the local area.

After a year or so of that I "sold out" and got a proper job in a bank after realising I liked things like having disposable income and not living with my parents.

[macmakkara]