On Saturday 23 February 2013 12:03:00 Ethan Furman did opine: > On 02/23/2013 07:51 AM, Chris Angelico wrote: > > Steve, why do you say you're not a developer? A score of languages > > under your belt, choosing to write code in your spare time, and > > speaking competently on the comparative merits of different languages > > and why you made the decision you made - sounds like you're every bit > > a coder. Don't run yourself down so! :) > > +1
I'll add another +1 to that. My /main/ coding expertise, such as it is, is in assembly on the 6x09 cpu's. Sure, I've done stuff in C, and in Basic09, but when I sit down to do a serious bit of code for that platform that doesn't need fancy trig functions, I do it in assembly. Why? The closer I can get to the hardware, the fewer surprises I find. I can handle input errors for every possible error just by testing for legal input, and if not legal, branch to output a help screen to the dummy that cannot type. Often me. :) Quick stuff that does require some math gets done in basic09 which is good to about 8-9 digits, or calculating the next eclipse, based on julian dates, gets done in C where I have doubles and 17 digit floats available. And I have quite a few bash scripts, often running as background daemons, that greatly simplicate my daily activities. KMail for instance, doesn't have to take 2 minute timeouts while it fetches new mail is one of them. So my email is a matter of tapping the + key for the next message, replying if I want to & clicking send. Everything else is automatic. Ditto if I am working on the old machine & need a printout, I just send the text file from the assembler to device /p, and 15 seconds later a laser printer on that desk fires up and spits out my listing at 22 ppm. /p actually feeds a ser-usb adapter, its output is captured on this machine, sent to cups for rendering & sent back down the same cable to the printer also plugged into that usb hub. To me there is zero point in having to stop & look up the command line syntax to drive lp with a 100 character command line when except for the filename to print, it never changes. Put it in a bash script that doesn't make typu's. So I am a programmer in that sense, just not at the level of abstraction that python has to offer. I am here because I was hoping some knowledge leakage would help me to understand python, but at my age I am beginning to have to admit the level of abstraction is something I may never fully grok. If I ever find a python book that literally starts at square one, it _will_ come home with me though. But I have too many hobbies too, I have a BP rifle that needs a trip to the range this afternoon for some exercise. :) Cheers, Gene -- "There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order." -Ed Howdershelt (Author) My web page: <http://coyoteden.dyndns-free.com:85/gene> is up! My views <http://www.armchairpatriot.com/What%20Has%20America%20Become.shtml> The telephone is a good way to talk to people without having to offer them a drink. -- Fran Lebowitz, "Interview" I was taught to respect my elders, but its getting harder and harder to find any... -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list
