I could share this for three reasons at least, and none are about Python itself.
1) in terms of lighting and camera movement, this is the best conference video I've seen. JSConf has better staging, sure, but this one is shot better. Perl conferences are generally a static low-res camera in a low-light room, statically shot from a strange dutch angle trying to get the speaker and the slides and doing poorly at both, or even worse, shakeycam. This is what we should shoot for, Mongers.
2) Sure, real programmers use Unix/Linux to run their code, real programmers, but beginner programmers don't come in knowing how to set up an environment and come in with the (Windows) computer they have, and the documentation sucks and they feel lost and they don't like it and they don't feel the power, and they're gone. Even if you dislike Microsoft, good tools for Windows and good documentation are important for new programmers, important for building community, important for inclusiveness.
3) Software Carpentry: teaching software engineering skills to scientists, in Python. Love the idea, dislike the language (Monger4Life) but this should be a thing at Purdue.
Aside) I'm starting to use Python. It started with my FitBit; I couldn't get Perl to do OAuth easily but found code in Python that does it. Have built wrapper libs around Pushover, Notify and Festival so that my work laptop can nag me about moving. I'll certainly build more tools in Python as time goes on.
In message, in tone, in production values, in quality of presentation, this is what I wish more Perl presentations, more presentations in general, looked like.
1) in terms of lighting and camera movement, this is the best conference video I've seen. JSConf has better staging, sure, but this one is shot better. Perl conferences are generally a static low-res camera in a low-light room, statically shot from a strange dutch angle trying to get the speaker and the slides and doing poorly at both, or even worse, shakeycam. This is what we should shoot for, Mongers.
2) Sure, real programmers use Unix/Linux to run their code, real programmers, but beginner programmers don't come in knowing how to set up an environment and come in with the (Windows) computer they have, and the documentation sucks and they feel lost and they don't like it and they don't feel the power, and they're gone. Even if you dislike Microsoft, good tools for Windows and good documentation are important for new programmers, important for building community, important for inclusiveness.
3) Software Carpentry: teaching software engineering skills to scientists, in Python. Love the idea, dislike the language (Monger4Life) but this should be a thing at Purdue.
Aside) I'm starting to use Python. It started with my FitBit; I couldn't get Perl to do OAuth easily but found code in Python that does it. Have built wrapper libs around Pushover, Notify and Festival so that my work laptop can nag me about moving. I'll certainly build more tools in Python as time goes on.
In message, in tone, in production values, in quality of presentation, this is what I wish more Perl presentations, more presentations in general, looked like.
No comments:
Post a Comment