Immediate Shutdown

Immediate shutdown

So I had my first post become a bit popular... and so my brain decided to do the dumb thing it does, and stop me from even opening Tumblr for a week. yay!

Teaching programming

One of the things I want to do is teach. My plan is, now that I (F'''ucking FINALLY!) finished my engineering degree, is to work a few years in the robotics industry, and then spend half my worktime there, and half teaching kids programming and code. Because,

A:

I feel that in the same way that you need to know physics, reading, internet literacy, history and a bunch of other skills to navigate the modern world, you also need programming. Not that everyone should become a software engineer. But everyone should be able to set up a few scripts to automate things on their PC, and know enough about how code works to know how the software that runs the world works. In the same way that you know enough about physics to know how satellites giving you internet works. Could you build that? No, of course not. Nor should you. But you know things can go in orbit. That things can communicate wirelessly over long distances and so on. You know enough about mechanics to use a screwdriver to take simple things apart and clean them, and know that you do NOT know enough to fix the electronics in your dishwasher.

You know it is not magic. Yet... programming is often thought of as that. And it really should not be. I swear to you. It is easy. Not to develop code to run a car, but to have it automatically edit text in a file according to rules you made? You betcha. B:

While learning to program as a job takes years, learning enough to understand the basics, and being able and unafraid to set up a script or throw together a python program to automatically sort files on your work computer really does not take a lot of time or effort. And I will guarantee, most students will benefit a lot from it. C:

Programming is much more a craft, like mechanic or carpenter. But more appealing for kids who are not confident in working with their hands. There is also good reasons for why it used to be thought of as a thing people who did not get along with others did. It is, in essence, defining and solving puzzles. To solve problems, that you also have to define yourself. Many a child have found that programming was a thing they could do, and be good at. A thing that helped them be confident. Maker spaces and learning programs with robotics or game development is filled with youngsters eager to learn. Who have finally find a thing they can be good at! But these programs a rare. And often schools and teachers mismanage how to run them. Not out of malice (There are few professions that is filled with more kindhearted people that deserves our endless appreciation than teachers), but because there are endless well paid and prestigious career opportunities for software developers. And so most schools will not have anyone who can even advice them when they set up these things. There is so much good to do. And I want to do some of it!

My place is never cleaner than when I have coding to do that I really do not want to do

Every Programming expert on the planet: "NEVER throw an exception as normal program flow" Kotlin: "Good practices are for OTHER people!"

You were dumb, and that is GREAT

The reason you remember yourself as being dumb, and making bad decisions... is because you, now, are smarter than that person was. You have developed your skills, your empathy, your critical thinking. You have grown. You have become a better person. And that is GREAT. That is NOT a sad fact. So keep growing. And hopefully, when future you looks back on you, now, they have gotten better yet again.