Hello /g/, what is it like to be a programmer ?
And do you need to be good at Algebra ?
All you need to know is how to install gentoo
>>54686470
>what is it like to be a programmer ?
Fun.
>do you need to be good at Algebra ?
No. You have to be decent at it.
You have to like to logic and like to learn. Most important: you have to know how to google.
> Hello /g/, what is it like to be a programmer ?
You sit in front of a computer screen all day long and hate your life. Yet you know that no other career would give you that much money for the little work you are doing unless you'd be really, really great at it.
>>54686512
>Most important: you have to know how to google.
/thread
>And do you need to be good at Algebra ?
if you can't get the hang of algebra you will probably have problems
the specifics of algebra won't matter, but the kind of "problem solving" skill involved in both skill sets is similar
>>54686470
>Hello /g/, what is it like to be a programmer ?
preddy gudd
>And do you need to be good at Algebra ?
in theory you barely need to know what algebra is
in practice if you're dumb enough to struggle with high school algebra you're too dumb to be a good programmer although there are many mediocre ones out there
Depends on the field.
Do you need algebra for web Dev? Probably not.
Game Dev? Definitely. Calculus AND trig too.
>>54686523
>>54686512
While I totally agree I think it is important to note that you should *understand* what the solution (a SO answer for example) means.
>>54686470
Depressing. I do the same shit day after day. It's not hard, it's not challenging, just tedious. The pay is decent, but so I far I feel like I'm just coasting through life.
>>54686564
I struggled with algebra in high school.i actually failed it. Im making 70k as a back end Dev now.
Always room for improvement if you don't give up
>>54686589
Your mentality. Your fault.
>>54686566
This is my problem with Unity (I still use it because theoretically it is great) and other frameworks - when I wanted to program basic rotation logic I had no idea what was involved. What was one call to the api before was now a mystery.
>>54686599
just because you're making money doesn't mean you're a good programmer able to solve and come up with novel solutions
and I've known smart people who struggled with high school math (one particular buddy of mine stands out since he was third in my country's national math olympiad but failed calculus that same year lol) but if you're asking "do you need to be good at algebra" you're almost certainly failing because you're unintelligent
>>54686589
Congrats.
This is how nearly every job is, except much lesser pay and 0 respect.
Fucking ungrateful shit.
>>54686589
I often feel this too anon although I'm more in systems engineering/devops than straight programming.
>>54686602
This. I am young but already see the difference between this guy and people that love life. A good attitude goes a long way and if you aren't doing something you like daily you should keep moving.
>>54686625
I know that feel m8.
That's why you just Google the specific topic you need help with.
I never took calc yet i managed to create realistic cloth physics from scratch.
>>54686470
Computers are just big calculators so you only have to know what to tell the computer to do.
You don't need to know what 5 + 5 is you just need to know how to ask the computer for the answer.int main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
int a = atoi(argv[1]);
int b = atoi(argv[2]);
return a + b;
}
>>54686763
Really? That is impressive. Did you find yourself just finding/learning the higher math concepts and using them as you eedee or were you able to avoid them? I will be learning calculus eventually but I already have so much on my plate atm that I need to minimize what I take on now.
Currently trying to emulate automobile physics as close as possible in a 2D environment so I can attach a DIY machine learning module so I have something on my resume.
>>54686771
>calculating Undefined Behaviour
top kek
>>54686470
As web dev you definetly dont hve to be good at algreba. But it isnt a fun job either.
>>54686470
It's great. You should be excellent at algebra no matter what, the applications are endless inside and outside of programming
>>54686470
I've never used much math but I'm a front end dev
Have you ever built a website? Front end dev is a lot like that but with some database crap thrown in. Specifics can vary but ultimately if it's something you enjoy, it's a fine way to kill 40ish hours a week
More importantly the pay is excellent and if you get a good job the work life balance is great too. Before I got into this I was taking unpaid lunches and getting shit on by supervisors for not clocking in on time, dress code violations, etc; now none of that matters at all and I can focus on work instead of idiotic minutia
>>54686470
Doing web dev? No need to be good at algebra.
Doing real complex stuff like game development, physics simulations, 3d rendering, etc? Brush up on your algebra you fag!
>>54686513
But /pol/ told me I could take a 6 month welding course and earn 60k a year?!?!
>>54686844
it's just a shitty example adding machine who cares.
>>54686880
$60K is starting salary for a junior dev in the Midwest. I don't know what welder promotions look like but if you're not passionately into metal working I'd not go that route
>>54686884
This works in literally no case though. If you input 5 + 5 it would return 5+'+' and if you input 5+5 you'd access unavailable memory.
>>54686991
That's because 5+5 is 3 arguments, it's only supposed to take 2 int arguments.
>>54686653
You don't just decide to have a good attitude despite what you shits think, it isn't possible for everyone to make that a habit.
You honestly think that people would choose between depression and happiness and willingly take the former?
It all depends on who you are working with. If they care about quality, it's a very rewarding and fun job. If they are shitty CS grads that never really cared for the craft, it's terrible.
>>54687045
You have a bad attitude because you're comparing yourself to other successful people who you think have it better.
There are people with MUCH worser jobs making nothing who still have good attitudes.
I don't know what you expect. Unless you're in NASA/some top research program, then you won't be doing cutting edge programming
>>54687208
>Making nothing
>worser jobs
>still have good attitudes
Drug addicts or religious nuts
>>54686589
What job is better?
Name one?
>>54687060
>corporations ever having quality code
nigga what world you live in
>>54686470
it's like pooing not in loo
>>54686470
>Hello /g/, what is it like to be a programmer ?
It's shit
>And do you need to be good at Algebra ?
Sort of
>>54686470
> what is it like to be a programmer ?
a lot of fun, this kind of fun that makes you stop thinking about everything else
> And do you need to be good at Algebra ?
Nah, you need to be exceptional at thinking. If you have good short term memory, catch up quicker than your acquaintances then you are good to go.
>>54687475
Designated bull prepper
>>54687208
I think it isn't related to the job but rather rooted in the individual. I actually like my job that is why I chose it, and I would probably gravitate towards similar things in my own time. The pace of the industry, surviving corporate politics etc are what personally get me down. It isn't about comparisons. I feel like I'm just putting up with it in order to bolster my savings instead of living my fucking life and when I get home I'm too tired to bother with anything else.
Programming is fun, but working within the confines of a modern company is awful.
>>54686588
Lol, no. I regularly approach problems and solve them by instinct without really knowing what the fuck I did in the end. But it works dammit.
>>54686991
Take a look at this stupid motherfucker
>>54686771
>2016
>using atoi
top kek
How hard is it to learn how to program? Do you have to be creative?
>>54686880
specialized welders can make even more, like upwards of 80 or 90 but it's dangerous, you're outside in the elements most of the time and around all sorts of dangerous shit. that being said if i suddenly lost all of the parts of my brain the knew how to program i'd probably be a mechanic.
>>54690005
if your ass is too dumb to google all this stuff you aren't gonna make it very far as a programer.
>>54690235
Or I could ask for the opinions of people myself.
>>54686880
in that case you could join a union in any trade and journey at 80-120k w/ benefits. If you just want a decent living as fast as possible then this is it. CS is for trans-fats and scrawny weebs who can't work for a living. Don't do 6mo of welding, its a fucking waste of time.
what do i do if i want to get into researching computation like my idol, here?
should i study math or physics? currently in CS and it's straight butt, preping me to be a codemonkey.
>>54686470
>Learn to program
>really fun, challenging etc.
>imagine myself being a programmer, having my life defined by it
>get depressed
Can some of you share the joys of being into programming? Lately I've found meaning even in math but with programming it just feels like escapism.
>>54690629
Math or CS is really fine for your undergraduate. If you want to get into research, your masters/phd are going to be much more important. Your bachelors is just a stepping stone.
In either case, your bachelors is just going to scratch the surface.
Or, you could just start doing research, assuming you don't need the backing of a university. I've been doing vulnerability/security related research for over 10 years and have spoken at universities/conferences. I don't even have an associates. Of course, if I needed a bunch of supercomputers, I wouldn't have the backing of a university or anything. I suppose I'd need to try and find a company or something to fund my research. Fortunately, I haven't needed anything I couldn't afford myself.
>tfw it's autism inspection day at work
I'm fucked senpai
>>54690629
Math and physics take a lot of time and dedication. Unless you are genuinly interested in it, I'd stick with CS.
That said, math is easier, because physics is math + a lot of freaky shit on top. Physics is more fun later on (you do a lot of stuff that mathematicians would consider "unclean"). But this is only after you went through hell for 1/2 years.
>>54686470
>what is it like to be a programmer?
You spend many nights in front of a screen.
You put a lot of effort in stuff which doesn't work out in the end.
You need patience and shouldn't easily get frustrated.
After a lot of dedication it's rewarding at some point.
>And do you need to be good at Algebra?
No. Unless for very specific stuff.
>>54690976
I like when stuff works.
After weeks of blood, sweat and tears you can look at something and say "I made this".
I also like that you get "less stupid" every year. If you look at your code 3 years ago you think "It's shit". Code from 5 years ago is terrible. Code before that is absolutely horrible.
But that only means you made a progression. You always have to keep on learning, new programming languages are not only important for their specific tasks (for each purose there's one langauge that does it best). But it's also important because you have to re-think coding. You adapt the design decisions and paradigms of a certain language and then you go back to another language and think "oh, wait, in xyz I would do it like that" and suddenly realize, ther's no reason to not do it like that. And suddenly your code is less shitty..
It's pretty number heavy. Networking is the best choice for people who have trouble with numbers. Memorizing subnetting and binary is really the only number involved part.
t. 6th grade math level
>>54691329
>You spend many nights in front of a screen.
you mean it when coding professionally or as a hobby? because if a company was trying to force me to spend time after 5 on their crap, they'd never see me again
>>54687475
manwhore
>>54691367
>Networking is the best choice for people who have trouble with numbers
jej
>>54691367
Networking has more math than general purposes programming bud. That being said, its not like it takes rocket science levels of mathematics.
>>54691510
First you spend a lot of nights before you become a coder. Wether you study CS or start by a self taught WebDev: deadlines are a coder's mutual enemy.
Later on time management gets better, but then it all depends on the job: Some positions require higher availiblity, others not so much.
Depends on the size of your company and also on how close you work at the customer and how much responsibility you have.
is 30yo too late to learn programming and make some bucks?
>>54692081
Yes, gramps.
>>54686880
be careful anon, most blue collar jobs will be replace by robots in the future
pipe welding is being done with automated welding machines (check out in google)
it's true, we still need welders, but you have to be VERY good and very specialized (underwater welding). If you are just a simple welder, you will be replace by a machine in a few decades
it's a nice and badass job though
>>54691981
No. It takes less than a year to become employable if you can learn full time. just learn a language, essential algorithms and data structures and some enterprise framework for this language
>>54692095
no shit, really?
>>54692194
You realize that Zuckerberg turned 30 not too long ago, right? Programming is a young man's game, you should be in management by now
>>54692127
Someone has to maintain, program and build those bots. And in general the more complex a machine the more maintenance hours it will need. In the end there will be the same amount of work but there will be no place for unskilled labour like rapefugees and retards
>>54692081
>>54692216
30 is fine. You might have to play some catch up, but its more than possible. I'm 32, and I'm not (nor will I be) in management. If you get really good at something, you can make plenty of money without having to become management.
If I were you, I'd get really good at something. Focus on becoming an expert, rather than a generalist
>>54692081
It's never too late..
You could get a WebDev, there's so much demand it doesn't matter if you are old or not. Someone will be stupid enough to hire you. Also you can make websites for friends when you start to get experience.
A word of warning though:
It's a long way, don't expect to pick up HTML / JavaScript, the "theory" behind the internet, backend, databases and so on in a month. If you're in for a "quick buck" you'll be disapointed how hard it will be, just because ther's much to know.
But hey, impossible is nothing. If you really want it, put a year of dedication in it, code code code.. and then you can do something and get payed for.
What are some jobs for computer hardware?
>>54692216
>you should be in management by now
low-level management positions are one of the worst jobs imaginable. you get a shitton of additional responsibility and a lot more work for not that much extra money and you will never advance to a top level manager if you started as a dev. your endgame should a senior dev at some prestigious field, consultant, etc
>>54686771
Should code like this make sense to someone that has never studied programming?
Or am I fucked?
>>54692634
unless you know what atoi does, and what the meaning of the args to main are (specifically the argv pointer), than no, it wouldn't be expected that one would know what it does.
>>54692680
26 years too old to start a bachelor's degree for this stuff?
>>54692727
no, not really. age doesn't really mean shit unless you let it mean shit when it comes to being able to learn.
also, getting a bachelors is not the only way to learn. you can take online course and/or teach yourself as well.
I dropped out of high school, got a fashion degree and did a ton of drugs. Still, through working really hard, doing a bunch of different jobs, and believing in myself, I was able to excel in my field, which is a very complex one.
Your path may be different, but don't let others tell you that you can't achieve what you want, and don't let them convince you that there are unnecessary limitations like age or formal education. All the small people in the world want to tell you what you can't do, and that's bullshit.
If you are good at something marketable, someone will pay you to do it. If you enjoy it, then you will be successful. It's not easy to master something, but if you put in the time, you'll have a good shot.
>>54692727
Ofc not
>>54692727
No. Most of the top students in my CS class were in their late 20's / early 30's . That being said the majority are people are coming out of high school, but really no one gives a fuck about your age.
>Hello /g/, what is it like to be a programmer ?
I started programming when I was about 13 (very casually,) then studied CS in university, and I've been working for a few years now. I work a standard 9 to 5, the pay and benefits are fairly good, the work is usually interesting. One thing you need to be aware of is the work you're expected to do depends heavily on where you work. I have to be on call a few weeks a year, and occasionally I have to do server work early in the morning. That's just part of my particular role. There's downsides. If you're not the kind of person who can spend hours solving a single problem (which may seem unimportant,) you probably won't like programming.
>And do you need to be good at Algebra ?
Depends what you're working on, but in general, algebra is not used extensively. However, you probably need to be 'capable' of becoming good at math, for 2 reasons. First, if you plan to get an education in the field, any serious school is going to pile on the math requirements. CS is in many ways a branch of mathematics. The second reason is both math and programming are fields that lend well to logical thinking, so most people who are good at one can become good at the other. And most people who struggle with one will struggle with the other. There are exceptions of course.
I always advise people to just give it a try... that is how I started... I was screwing around with the Half Life SDK. This is one field you can just start experimenting with, you don't need to go anywhere or buy anything. Don't dwell too much on what language to start with, just pick something.
>>54692727
>>54692081
Start whenever you want. Although some idiots stereotype people too young as unreliable, and people too old as being out of the loop, age shouldn't be a concern.
So why is programming in linux better than windows?
>>54693324
you have to spend so much time and autism to get linux running that you dont actually do any programming
>>54693341
But then how do you get paid?
>>54693353
autism bux
>>54693377
No but really
>>54686470
>And do you need to be good at Algebra
kek.
ok
if you did bad in high school, you will find it is easier to go back and learn it
>>54689790
This. I wrote a fucking toy steganography script once and I -still- have no idea what it actually does. It Just Werks(C) though.
>>54686470for EACH in $(find -regex ".*\.\(png\|jpg\|avi\|mp4\)\$" | sed "s:^\.([\s\S]*)$:\1")
do
cp --parents /media/mint/Acer/Users/unswe$EACH $USB
done
>>54693886
Can you post more of these i'm collecting them
>>54693886
Explain?
>>54693324
The package manager makes it easy to install dependencies and such. Compiling some things on windows is hell.
That's basically it.
>>54695140
The joke is that it would stupid to multiply every possible number by itself for the square root.
Rather you so it like this:
>1*1 --> too small !
>1.5 * 1.5 --> too big !
>1.25 * 1.25 --> too small !
>1.375 * 1.375
And so on.
It's much faster than trying EVERY number..
>>54695276
1.375?
Isnt it 1.4 something
Why would a calculator round numbers?
>>54695716
My calculator stops at 1.375.
Are you implying my calculator is bad?
Are you?
>>54692634
No, it shouldn't.
>>54686470
>Hello /g/, what is it like to be a programmer ?
In the beginning it's all too easy and straightforward, fills you with self-confidence and boosts your enthusiasm.
As you get deeper into it, shit you have to learn stack up and multiply like fucking rabbits and it all gets so complicated that you often find yourself left with all the distress and frustration a sane human being is capable to bear, wondering 'why the hell didn't I choose anything else when I had the chance' during your insomniac nights.
I'm not even kidding, it's 4:50AM here and I can't stop worrying about my job's stupid schedule.
>>54686470
It's lonely.
That's what it is.
Math and Science can come into play but mainly it's logic and reasoning.
Is Physics and Chemistry actually required for programming? One of the colleges I'm considering asks for basic knowledge of them for the Computer Engineering career.
>>54696176
Ok fuck is this true?
>>54686470
It's either super fun and rewarding if you're into it, or it's a shit job if you're not into it.
Don't force yourself into it for money. It's not for everybody. If you love it, you'll know you love it.
Also, not necessarily algebra is necessary, but if you can't do algebra, 99% of the time you won't have the problem solving skills to be a good programmer.
>>54696506
No. Only people who have mental issues have that issue.
>>54686470
>Hello /g/, what is it like to be a programmer ?
Imagine what it's like to be a wizard. You spend a ridiculous amount of time fussing with cryptic descriptions of things (both reading and writing them), then occasionally get to do fucking awesome wizard shit.
>And do you need to be good at Algebra ?
Let me put it this way, you need to be the type of person who *could've* been a professional mathematician. So no, you don't need to be good at algebra as long as you've got the potential to be good at it.
Can someone explain an average use for anlgebra in real life programming application.
>>54697587
This is why I'm having such a hard time deciding if I want to give programming a go.
I wasn't exactly good at math in high school, I was capable to achieve high grades but needed a lot of studying, and I practically forgot all about it by now.
>>54696312
Recent Comp. Eng. grad here. Computer engineering is way more than programming. It also involves circuit design which requires some knowledge of how electricity works, which comes from physics classes. I did have to take a chem class, but I never had to apply the knowledge anywhere. Programming is probably the dominant part of the major though.
>>54689877
>how will i show /g/ that i "know" stuff?
>oh yeah, ill make a generic statement and write it pretentiously!
Go to bed jason
>>54697745
Rings and fields are important to elliptic curve cryptography
Depends on what kind of programming you do. Graphics programming is pure hardcore math, simple database Create Read Update Delete operations require you to know some basic math.
>>54686991
>>54689877
Do you even code?
^0^
>>54697824
math and programming are both subsets of logical thinking. you dont need to be good at math but if you're good at math you'll probably be good at programming
I love it. interesting problems every day, and my work place is enjoyable. life is quite relaxed except for a few crunch weeks a year. startup life is good :)
>>54700142
relational algebra is math
>>54701335
>all programmers use sememecolons C-like syntax language
>>54686470
Yes, you should be good at math in general. If you're not, work harder and become good.
Cunts like your pic related are unfortunately how today's world views programmers: trendy geeks with glasses writing "apps".
>>54686470
You dont need to know algebra just have the basic understanding of it and how it works
>>54701335
doesn't the compiler usually tell you when you miss a semicolon?
I know eclipse does it even while you're still typing
how would you miss a semicolon?
>>54686470
If you don't want to write garbage unoptimized code, then yes. You should know at least what is time and space complexity and how you can sacrifice one to benefit the other.
And when in doubt, google. Don't know how to google? google it.
