Coding bootcamps: Can you believe their claims?

The Christian Science Monitor ^ | June 25, 2016 | Max Lewontin

[GingisK]

You can learn to write in any computer language all by yourself if you work hard. Assuming people apply themselves while attending those camps, then it stands to reason that they could gain a working knowledge of programming.

Of course, an aptitude for that sort of thing goes a long long way.

[GingisK]

12 weeks of coding makes you an expert in nothing...

True, but it would get one started into a career if the person had the aptitude for programming. This would probably be as good a start as a few semesters in college.

Then, of course, are the algorithms. Do these schools teach techniques of problem solving or just language fundamentals?

Inquiring minds want to know.

[GingisK]

I puke when.I.look.at.java.sample.code or GUI interfaced application programming.

There we are, you and me, trudging along our happy path. It is surprising how few people even know about our pretty domain right along "pin row".

I am getting setup to teach "Embedded Computing" in high school. There are going to be some raised eyebrows all around that school. They have no idea what they just approved.

[GingisK]

IBM used to hire music majors, and then train them in software. It was shown that musically inclined people have that odd and special mind-set for software.

[w1andsodidwe]

Yeah, I am retired now too, but I found myself programming in whatever language it took to do the thing I was tasked to do. In many ways, all your answers can be found someplace on the internet by knowing what to google. But my boss was really too stupid to understand any of this. I was the only one that the President of the company would allow to touch his computers and other devices. I think that frustrated my boss because he was always sending someone else to try and they always failed. Attention to detail was really all it takes.