
Ask HN: How to deal with the tedium of programming? - facepalm
I&#x27;m still excited about the possibility to build things, but I can not get my enthusiasm up enough to learn the latest technologies. Any way out? I can&#x27;t really take time off because I need money.<p>(Context: I&#x27;ve been programming since I was 12, 30 years ago).<p>Edit: Thank you for all the replies! I can not comment individually at the moment because of HN posting limits.
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mattmanser
I would just build a few things however you want, not how you think you
should. I wanted to learn some new languages but kept getting stuck not doing
anything.

Instead I'm now mucking around with a Unity game, using C# which I already
know, and have suddenly found the motivation to start the udacity android
course.

Just do what you want to do, not what you think you should do, once you've got
your enthusiasm for programming back you'll find an excuse to learn something
new.

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kasey_junk
Go build something that doesn't require programming. Sounds like a simple case
of burn out.

One of the most insidious ideas people fall into is that they _have_ to spend
all of their free time learning new things all the time or else they will fall
behind. You should spend some time on professional development, but when
you've hit the wall banging your head against it doesn't help.

Go build some hardware or a rocking chair, or a yoga studio or whatever. The
lessons learned doing that can apply to your profession as well.

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segmondy
What I've noticed when it comes to programming is that after a while, almost
everything is a reinvention of the old stuff. Programming languages? Bah! Just
same old stuff, if you are already well versed in something, then you are not
phased by the new stuff, no new paradigms.

Then the annoying time it takes to setup frameworks and do the simplest
things! IDEs? meh! Especially if you are super comfortable with your vi or
Emacs.

So what do you do? Pick up a book with lots of examples, don't think too much
about it. Just type in the damn examples like a zombie, breeze through the
chapters, by the time you are half way you will start getting into the book,
don't forget to modify the examples to your own taste as you learn.

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yetanotheracc
How about grad school?

~~~
facepalm
I have the equivalent of a MSc (in maths). Sometimes I ponder doing a PhD for
fun, but it would have to be on the side because otherwise it costs too much
money.

Looking into data science, now is actually the first time I keep seeing PhD
listed as a requirement for jobs that would interest me.

Maybe one day - atm I don't really have any connections into academia and
wouldn't quite know how to find a worthy subject and a willing mentor.

Also, I am 42.

~~~
chrisseaton
You get paid to do a CS PhD. I left industry to go back and do one - was only
26 but was married and settled with dependants and a mortgage and things. I
Googled for and then cold emailed professors who did research I was interested
in to get started.

~~~
peatmoss
A PhD is the ultimate leisure class purchase no matter how secure your
funding. As a paid PhD student, my earnings are much, much lower than they
were in my former professional career. And for the most part, a PhD isn't an
entry into vastly higher paying work--especially as a programmer. So, there's
definitely an opportunity cost. I'd advise anyone to skip the PhD unless
they've got a burning desire to do the sorts of things people do with PhDs,
and are drawn to lower / foregone earnings

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interdrift
Technologies change, math doesn't ;).

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sklogic
What do you mean by the "latest technologies"? Nothing really changed
fundamentally during the last 30 years.

~~~
facepalm
Well I can't get a job as a JavaScript developer atm because I have never used
any of the new client side frameworks like AngularJS or React. I have only
toyed with NodeJS and CouchDB is the only NoSQL database I have tried.

I used to be a Java developer, but haven't monitored the developments of the
language and best practices for the last 3 years. Also I don't really like
Java anymore.

I ponder getting into Android, but it's Java again, and then I find I have to
learn a whole new style language that is almost but not quite like CSS, but
seemingly less powerful.

I don't really care about agile development or scrum, another deal breaker for
many jobs.

I like data science, but it seems mostly PhDs fresh from university or other
young people are being hired for that. I actually enjoy doing Coursera or
Udacity courses in data science, but it's not enough.

~~~
M8
_"...I have never used any of the new client side frameworks like
AngularJS..."_

You have just saved a considerable amount of time and nerves. Not only will
they fundamentally change it in version 2.0, they are going to use a different
language - TypeScript flavour.

~~~
facepalm
I had in fact started a learning project with AngularJS and the very next day
they announced that they would change everything in version 2. Naturally I
didn't feel like investing more time into version 1.

