

Being a Non-Hacker in a Hacker's World - JohnN
http://www.scribblesheet.co.uk/viewarticle.php?aid=216
An article I wrote about being a non-hacker in a hackers world. It can be uncomfortable. <p>How many people on YC news cannot hack?
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iamelgringo
OK, so I read Hackers and Painters while in LA. I'd arrived after 3 years of
studying computer graphics, 2D, 3D, image compositing, 3D animation. I wanted
to be a VFX artist. I was starting to put together a decent portfolio of some
stuff I'd done.

Then I made some friends who worked in the VFX industry, and I realized how
much the life of an FX artist sucked. So, shortly after I got my first offer
to work for an FX firm, I decided to leave town.

One of my friends, (he teaches FX at Sony Imageworks now) told me: The guys at
Imageworks who have the most creative freedom are the programmers. The artists
have to reproduce what someone else tells them to reproduce for 16 hours a
day, 6-7 days a week. The programers write code whatever way they want to as
long as the code gets the job done.

So, I picked up a copy of Hackers and Painters, left LA and enrolled in a CS
program. That was 3 years ago. I've been plugging away at school ever since.

I've since moved to the Bay area, I'm finishing my degree in two more
semesters, and I'll finally have a go at my startup.

I agonized and complained for months after I read Hackers and Painters because
I couldn't hack and I didn't think I'd ever be able to. I was intimidated.
But, then I figured if I didn't take the leap and dive in, I'd still be
whining about it months or years from now.

So, if you're upset that you don't fit in in hacker culture, and that your not
a hacker... Maybe you're trying to tell yourself something. Maybe what you
really want to do is learn how to hack. It's what I wanted all along. I just
didn't know it.

~~~
whacked_new
Thanks for the inspirational post. Keep it up, and keep sharing your
experiences with others (on- and offline)!

Coming from an art background though, you probably have a significant
advantage when it comes to creative expression.

~~~
JohnN
I need to learn how to hack and I will

~~~
SamReidHughes
What does that even mean? It's called programming! Making software! Stuff!

"Hack" is a verb that badly needs a direct object behind it, usually with the
word "together" in between, and even then it's still cringe-inducing, because
usually its usage takes some form of "look at what words I use." The word
"hack" is practically a form of profanity.

~~~
far33d
Wrong. Maybe to you... but for many many years it has meant something
completely different. Scroll down and find yourself enlightened....

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mrtron
If you are learning Python, new to programming, and want to be a web-
entrepreneur, I strongly suggest you check into Django once you learn Python
reasonably well.

Best of luck

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ardit33
I am so tired of hearing this word "hacker". Use, programmer, software
engineer, coder whatever.

There are appropreate times to use the word "hack", when i am doing something
really quick and dirty, just b/c it needs to get out asap, but probably I am
not really proud of my solution, as it probably less maintanable on the long
run.

When you heare phrases like: I did something "hackish", or my bug fix is kinda
of a "hack", usually are not something programmers are proud of. Usually that
means I did a quick and dirty solution to that problem, and not an elegant
one.

In an early startup, i guess, being quick is the most important thing, but
after a while you have to start caring about the long term of the code you are
writting or end up like friendster, where their poor performance killed the
company.

A good programmer will use a "hack" only as a last resort.

~~~
far33d
ardit, no offense, but your lack of knowledge about the etymology of the word
is apparent. I hate to jump onto this flame-bait, but here's the real
definition of a "hacker" from the illustrious jargon file:

    
    
     1. A person who enjoys exploring the details of programmable systems and how to stretch their capabilities, as opposed to most users, who prefer to learn only the minimum necessary. RFC1392, the Internet Users' Glossary, usefully amplifies this as: A person who delights in having an intimate understanding of the internal workings of a system, computers and computer networks in particular.
     
     2. One who programs enthusiastically (even obsessively) or who enjoys programming rather than just theorizing about programming. 
    

<http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/H/hacker.html>

~~~
joshwa
argh please wrap your lines!

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choward93
Great article. I cant write code if god could help me, but i understand it to
a decent level. But i hope to take on the business end of things in my company
because i have more experience there. Knowing how the program works is a great
value for a business guy like me, because i can communicate with the hackers
on my team, and speak in their dialect. Its also kinda necessary to understand
how your product works.

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JohnN
How many non hackers are here on YC News?

~~~
djb
I'm one. Coincidentally, I'll also be starting to learn how to program
tomorrow. I'll be learning C from K&R. I wish you the best of luck with
Python.

~~~
timr
Oh, dear god...don't learn how to program from K&R!

Aside from K&R being a bad first-time instructional book, C is just a bad
choice of a first-time language. Most CS departments start freshmen with Java,
these days (hell...back in my day, most new programmers started with Basic or
Pascal, before moving into the ugly world of C.)

If at all possible, learn a scripting language first. Learn Python. Learn
Perl. Learn Javascript. All are more productive and fun for first-timers than
C. Compared to C, they're all ultra-expressive _and_ ultra-friendly, and you
will have an easier time understanding the _why_ of programming, since you
won't be as distracted with the details of the _how_.

~~~
comatose_kid
K&R is a great book to learn C from. It is short, the authors are programming
greats, and as a bonus you get to learn a little about how the Unix
programming model works.

And just to be devil's advocate, C is a fine first language to learn - it is
small and encourages you to understand what the machine is doing. C++ on the
other hand is not a fun place for beginners to hang out.

Just because most CS depts start freshmen with Java doesn't mean that Java is
a great first choice.

I think learning C and Python/Ruby would make for a pretty nice combination.

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traybould
Just curious, why choose Python to learn first? Is that what most here would
recommend?

~~~
timr
Python gives you the nice features of modern, dynamic languages (you might not
know what this means, but trust me: they're nice), while still forcing you to
think and write clean code. Plus, it's not academic -- Python is a full-
fledged, big-boy language, and people use it regularly for real work.

There are other languages that you could learn first, but Python offers a
really friendly cross-section of features and flexibility that makes it an
attractive beginner's language. It's definitely the language I would teach to
first-time programmers, given no other constraints.

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edw519
Oh how I wish I could share the joys of hacking with non-hackers, but that
would be like describing the color blue to a blind man. You just gotta
experience it yourself. There's nothing like putting something together and
seeing it work the first time. Even if it isn't perfect, that first output is
better than sex. Still makes make holler and jump out of my chair! (The
output, not the sex.)

I would strongly suggest trying out any of the many "Build an App is x Days or
Hours". Grab a book or something on-line. They're everywhere. There was even a
pretty good "Build You Own Ruby on Rails Web App" on the forum a few days ago
(probably 2nd or 3rd page by now). Follow the instructions and do what they
say. Build you app.

One of two things will happen: you'll either feel like I do and you'll be
hooked. Or not. Either way is OK, but to not give it a shot in 2007 would be a
shame.

(By the way, you'll probably find out that's how the best of us got started.
School is cool, but nothing replaces just doing it.)

~~~
JohnN
Thanks for the tips

