On Thu, 30 Apr 2009 03:20:04 +0100, Lyle wrote: > I was hoping I could get a little feedback on the content before it > the first one goes out (later today)
This might not be early enough, but here's my take: > Software Programming > > A local programming group is offering schools and colleges, a free > evening software programming course for their students. Details of > which follow:- A free evening course for beginners in software programming is being offered to local school and college students. ["Details ..." is superfluous] > What is Perl? > > Perl is a programming language. There are lots of different > programming languages, some suited to making specific pieces of > software, others can be applied to a broad range of applications. A > programming language is designed to be human readable and writeable, > it gets translated into the ones and naughts of machine code by a > compiler. Perl is what's known as a high level language, meaning > it's far away from coding in ones and naughts. There are many different programming languages; some specially designed writing for specific types of software, while others, like Perl, can be applied to a broad range of software. High level programming languages, such as Perl, are designed so that programs may be easily read and written by humans. Such programs are then translated by a compiler into the ones and zeroes which are understood by computers. ["naught" is nothing, "nought" is zero, and "zero" sounds better anyway] > Why is Perl a good first language? [It isn't, as Larry said: "Perl should only be studied as a second language. A good first language would be English."] Why is Perl a good first programming language? > Although many people find Perl is the only programming language > they need. However, many people ... > The webs most popular film and movie site is powered by Perl > http://www.imdb.com/ The web's ... > Jobs as programmers > > Programming isn't easy, it requires a lot of practice and skill. s/,/;/ > Employers seeking software developers most often test a programmers "test a programmer's" or "test programmers'". "most" is superfluous. > What does the course provide? > > The course teaches the basics of computer programming. How to create > small programs in Perl that read input from the user and save things > to disk. ... save output to disk or display it to the user. [You probably also need to mention something else, as that's not very inspiring on its own. Do you include any web stuff? Are any of the programs interesting in their own right, such as simple games (hangman, the animal guessing game)?] > Most importantly, the course aims to show students how they can > teach themselves further programming skills. [well worth mentioning] > Why is this course offered for free? > > Perl itself is open source and free to download. It's not a > commercial product like Microsoft Windows. The local Perl moungers > group wants to [Either "mongers" or "mungers", please; I don't like "m[ou]ngers" much at the best of times, but I really hate the idea of coining "moungers" from it] > promote Perl as a programming language and bring new blood to the useful language [you can't deny that it's a programming language] > language. After all the beginners of today are the gurus of > tomorrow. After all, the beginners ... > The course is only available to teenagers (ages 13 to 19). > Considering The course is available to students in Key Stages 4 and 5. [Try not to sound too lecherous, and don't put absolute bounds on the range with "only" and specific ages] > the usually high cost of attending such a course, we hope this > kind of scheme will be picked up all around the country. Giving > students of all ... country, giving ... > financial backgrounds the chance to catch the programming bug. > > > Who are Perl Moungers? Mongers > Perl moungers are social groups of Perl programmers. The local > group is [mongers aren't groups; they're people who *may* be members of groups] Perl Monger groups provide arenas in which Perl programmers may communicate both socially and on technical matters, and usually serve specific geographical regions. > Bristol and Bath Perl Moungers ran by Lyle Hopkins. They hold > regular ... Mongers, run by ... -- Peter Haworth [email protected] "I couldn't even find anything to read. The hotel shop only had two decent books, and I'd written both of them." -- Douglas Adams, the Salmon of Doubt This email (and attachments) are confidential and intended for the addressee(s) only. If you are not the intended recipient please notify the sender, delete any copies and do not take action in reliance on it. Any views expressed are the author's and do not represent those of IOP, except where specifically stated. IOP takes reasonable precautions to protect against viruses but accepts no responsibility for loss or damage arising from virus infection. For the protection of IOP's systems and staff emails are scanned automatically.” Institute of Physics Registered in England under Registration No 293851 Registered Office: 76/78 Portland Place, London W1B 1NT
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