Why did you learn to program?

[Armitage]

A coworker and I were discussing this last night long after we should have gone home We noted that there seemed to be two kinds of programmers, roughly summed up by the poll choices for the first question.

In our experience, the people that came to it by the second route are much more productive, but I suspect that's skewed by our situation here. Our primary product isn't software, but rather analysis & research. You need alot of domain specific knowledge, and the software we generate is largely for in-house use - ie. not very polished. When we've tried to bring strictly CompSci guys in on projects we end up getting to bogged down walking them through what we're trying to accomplish to the point that we may as well do it ourselves.

Anyway ... should make for interesting discussion.

 

[AdamSnow]

Seemed like the logical thing to do back in 97-98... now it's worthless in many ways and I dont even use my knowledge...

I dont even have developer tools installed on my current system... heh

 

[mugs]

Neither. I had an interest in computers (macs at the time) and had learned pretty much all I could up to that point... programming was all that was left. So I fit closer with "I had other things to accomplish" if "other things to accomplish" can include learning for the sake of learning. This was in 9th grade. I now have formal CompSci training. I consider myself to be a pretty decent programmer. I'm great with developing algorithms and putting a process into code, I'm slightly lacking in the extent of my knowledge of all the different classes/functions/modules in the languages I use, only because I haven't used any one language for a great amount of time.

 

[KB]

I went into programming because in 96-98 I was told by colleges that I was going to be a millionaire with yachts and lots of women!!!! Well that didn't happen. Well actually they said jobs would be plentiful and money great. But that wasn't true either. I just found I enjoyed the thought process that went into programming, like solving a puzzle.

Knowing the business is much more important than knowing coding. This was not the case when all we had was C. Now with VB, Java and .Net, programming is easier to grasp for non Comp Sci folks. I am fortunate in that I am working with a group that doesn't know programming so they have to teach me the business so I can get the programming done. But finding someone who knows both is quite a find.

 

[Drakkon]

Parents got me a subscription to 321Contact and we didnt even have a comp at the time but they had those BASIC games you could code in. Dad ended up pulling a comp out of a dumpster and let me have it, luckly dos/basic was installed on it and the rest from there is history
I ended up in HS doing programming classes, went for my BS in CS but only ended up getting a minor in it.

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: KB
I went into programming because in 96-98 I was told by colleges that I was going to be a millionaire with yachts and lots of women!!!! Well that didn't happen. Well actually they said jobs would be plentiful and money great. But that wasn't true either. I just found I enjoyed the thought process that went into programming, like solving a puzzle.

Knowing the business is much more important than knowing coding. This was not the case when all we had was C. Now with VB, Java and .Net, programming is easier to grasp for non Comp Sci folks. I am fortunate in that I am working with a group that doesn't know programming so they have to teach me the business so I can get the programming done. But finding someone who knows both is quite a find.

Yep ... that's basically how I sell myself. I'm an engineer (Aerospace) by education, but I'm much better with the programming/compsci stuff then the average engineer in my field, despite having no formal background in the area. Admittedly, my CompSci background is full of holes ... I couldn't tell you squat about assembly, os or compiler design, etc. But I somehow get by

I had been poking around with programming since we got a TRS80 as a kid, but my thesis for my masters basically turned into a big exercise in numerical methods, and it's grown from there!

 

[kamper]

I voted for the stable job option, but it's really more a question of interests. I started because I wanted to learn more and I do it now because I love it.

 

[Schadenfroh]

$0 1 (0vld B 73h 1337 h4x0r

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Schadenfroh
$0 1 (0vld B 73h 1337 h4x0r

Heh ... added an option for you (but you probably already voted)

 

[SelArom]

Originally posted by: Drakkon
Parents got me a subscription to 321Contact and we didnt even have a comp at the time but they had those BASIC games you could code in. Dad ended up pulling a comp out of a dumpster and let me have it, luckly dos/basic was installed on it and the rest from there is history
I ended up in HS doing programming classes, went for my BS in CS but only ended up getting a minor in it.

THAT RULES. My dad bought me a commodore 64 when I was two and I've been using computers ever since. In elementary school I set up my teachers computer to play games. I originally wanted to be a music major but when I took a computer class as part of my basics, I was like holy crap I'm wasting my time! I love programming, it's so much fun!

but you know your poll question can go for pretty much anything. I mean people because doctors either for a) money or b) to help people. lawyers, engineers, teachers (well teachers maybe not so much for the money) all share this same choice. so it's really just a question of

are you the kind of person who a) knows what they want and goes for it or b) does what they think everone else says they should do. I vote A :thumbsup:

 

[EagleKeeper]

Backed into programming. Seemed logical after trying to understand electronics.

Computer Science did not exist back in those days.

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: SelArom

Originally posted by: Drakkon
Parents got me a subscription to 321Contact and we didnt even have a comp at the time but they had those BASIC games you could code in. Dad ended up pulling a comp out of a dumpster and let me have it, luckly dos/basic was installed on it and the rest from there is history
I ended up in HS doing programming classes, went for my BS in CS but only ended up getting a minor in it.

THAT RULES. My dad bought me a commodore 64 when I was two and I've been using computers ever since. In elementary school I set up my teachers computer to play games. I originally wanted to be a music major but when I took a computer class as part of my basics, I was like holy crap I'm wasting my time! I love programming, it's so much fun!

but you know your poll question can go for pretty much anything. I mean people because doctors either for a) money or b) to help people. lawyers, engineers, teachers (well teachers maybe not so much for the money) all share this same choice. so it's really just a question of

are you the kind of person who a) knows what they want and goes for it or b) does what they think everone else says they should do. I vote A :thumbsup:

Well, sort of I guess. I thjink I'm looking at it more from the perspective of was learning to write code an end in itself, or just a means to a different goal.

 

[igowerf]

I learned programming in junior high on those TI calculators. After realizing how limited those calculators were, I started exploring that 386 that we had and found that it had QBASIC. Programming has always only been a hobby for me though and I use it to get things done for me. Right now, I'm minoring in CS.

 

[onelin]

For the love of it. I'm the classic story of the kid who always wanted to work with computers for a job since gradeschool. The exact areas of interest have changed since I started college (done in the spring), but the desire still remains.

It's not about the money, and it's unfortunate how many undergrads I see that are potentially in it for the wrong reasons.

 

[StageLeft]

Did it to make a living. Otherwise I couldn't care any less about it, and I agree that this route towards it probably makes for a poorer programmer.

 

[mysticfm]

There still aren't enough options for either question in your poll.

I first learned coding because I thought computers were cool and writing my own software would be fun ... and it was, most of the time. But I had no thought of doing it for a living at the time. Ten years later, after I had to give up my first career due to health problems, I came back to it and said "maybe this programming stuff would be something good to fall back on for a career, since it is something I already know that I enjoy."

As far as formal CompSci goes, my answer is "sort of". I'm mainly self-taught, but when I did decide to try making it a career, I got a vocational school diploma in it so that I'd have "a piece of paper" to show to prospective employers when I was starting out. But I doubt that's what you meant by "formal" (I suspect you meant B.S. or better. and then the answer would be "no").

 

[DT4K]

You really need an option for "because I like computers and thought it would be cool"

I voted the "good job" option, but I wouldn't have picked it if I didn't have some interest in it.
When I was a kid, I was into computers and tech stuff in general. I got a C64 when I was about 10 years old. I loved playing games on it and messing around with programming and stuff. My friends and I used to get together a couple times a week and copy and play games. I even started going to some commodore user group meetings when I was about 12. I took some programming classes in junior high in the early 80's and enjoyed them. Then in high school, I basically lost interest.

In 1998 I got a BS degree in General Science and couldn't find a job in anything other than sales. In my last term, I had taken a computer class that involved some programming and I really enjoyed it. Since my first degree was useless and programming seemed to be such a great field, I decided to go back to school in CS. I figured it would get me a good job and I thought I might like it. After my first term (with programming classes in Java and VB), I had no doubts that I loved programming. I got my CS degree in 2001 and I've been a software developer since then.

I'd put myself in the middle category. I don't just do it for the money and I don't just do it because I love it. I really enjoy designing and coding software and I think being a tech geek is cool, but I'm not one of those people who goes home and spends his free time writing device drivers for linux just for fun.

 

[Patt]

PD -- Began in the 80's with Apple ii+ & LOGO ... anyone else use that? -- PU

Ran from there to playing deeply with Windows computers, and the logical step was a quick trip to the technical school, where I breezed through. I am a programmer, but possess a lot of people skills, which some people I work with certainly don't have! Makes my job a whole lot easier, as I can effectively communicate with everyone to understand their business processes.

As was mentioned earlier, the puzzle-solving/logic problems are really what have hooked me.

 

[HardcoreRobot]

bc i figured it would be the most interesting thing i could do and get paid well for

 

[Barnaby W. Füi]

Originally posted by: onelin
For the love of it. I'm the classic story of the kid who always wanted to work with computers for a job since gradeschool. The exact areas of interest have changed since I started college (done in the spring), but the desire still remains.

It's not about the money, and it's unfortunate how many undergrads I see that are potentially in it for the wrong reasons.

:thumbsup: ditto

I wanted a computer for forever as a kid and finally (big emphasis there) got one at 17. At that point I had taken a VB class and learned a TINY bit of C++, and started to get into linux, and that led to programming, which soon became the dominant force in my computer nerdery. Now the "science" of computing is the only part that really trips my trigger. Don't care much about networking or using xyz operating system, I just use what gets the job done. It's programming where I really try to learn learn learn all the time. No formal education (that'll start in a year or two), and even without degrees of any kind yet, I am starting to make a decent living from it. Reminds me of this little piece of advice: http://mindview.net/WebLog/log-0037

 

[dighn]

it was a hobby. i was really into it in my highschool years. find it boring now though.

 

[oboeguy]

Where's the option for "I liked playing with LOGO in the 4th grade"? That's how I got started.

 

[LeetViet]

Do stuff that others hadn't already thought of.

 

[Schrodinger]

When I was nine I had my first computer. A couple friends were using QBasic at the time and just doing simple games they copied and modified out of books. I followed suit and got into writing my own little lame games. It progressed and kept going.

I continued this with CS at college but I must admit that was my largest mistake. Programming with deadlines and so forth has totally taken the fun out of it. I haven't done any coding "for fun" in YEARS (well except for a nix MAC spoofing tool )

 

[Nothinman]

Our computer classes in high school basicaly consisted of typing tutors, BASIC and Pascal. So it was essentialy required to take an intro to programming if you wanted a computer class. After HS I went to a 18-month tech school which also had a handfull of programming classes like x86 assembler, C++ and VB and a unix course that was essentially sh scripting so I got a lot of exposure to programming but nothing too useful. For a while I really did want to learn how to program more than lemonade stands but I found it extremely hard to come up with a good project that wasn't out of my league and all of the Windows development crap costs a ton of money that I didn't have. Then I got a job that required no programming skills, just doing helpdesk calls, but even though it was pointless to learn I still fiddled with things once in a while when I got the urge.

And in my free time I fought my way into Linux, constantly reinstalling the thing because I didn't have a clue what I was doing. But I kept fighting because I hated Windows and Linux seemed so cool. Eventually I got comfortable with it and when you run a unix system you eventually start writing your own scripts so I started playing with bash/sh and perl scripts. Now I'm nearly dependent on it, the first thing I did when I got my new Win2K machine at work was install cygwin and ActivePerl because cmd and WSH suck. And now that I'm 99% full-time Linux I've got thousands of free software packages with source code available and I don't know how I lived without them. I'm still really rusty in languages like C and C++ because I don't have any real use for them, but I use sh and perl fairly regulary in my job.

well except for a nix MAC spoofing tool

You wrote ifconfig?