I read The Inner Game of Tennis based on Alan Kay's description in a youtube video. It is an excellent book.
I am glad to see Csikszenmihalyi on the list as well. Flow is a very powerful concept; we all know it, but understanding it and using it effectively is a different matter entirely.
After reading The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh, I realized that all three books are actually talking about the same subject from different perspectives.
To this list, I would add:
anything by Robert Grudin, but especially:
Time and the Art of Living and The Grace of Great Things
How to solve it by G. Polya
Conceptual Blockbusting by James Adams
Nice to see the Mortimer Adler recommendation as well, but I think his How to Read a Book should be a prerequisite for serious reading.
As I've gotten older, I've come to the conclusion that true understanding requires the kind of depth that comes from knowing one's self intimately. It's a lot harder than it sounds, especially for a technologist.
The advantage of make, or any other decent build tool, is the dependency management; what depends on what, what's changed, what needs to be (re)built, what order to do all this. In the absence of all that, everything gets rebuilt all the time. Not a big deal for small projects but an absolute killer as projects get larger.
I completely agree with the sentiment of the article. Makefiles are a form of documentation. However, I no longer use make in new projects and instead use redux [1]: my implementation of djb redo. It manages the dependencies and you write your scripts in shell. Simple, straightforward and easy. No more 'make -B', no more make contortions.
Yes, you're right. However, in redo, you don't have a Makefile equivalent and, instead, specify the dependencies in the shell script that generates your target. Basically, the configuration language is shell (or any other program that can be invoked from a shell script).
I once spent a summer writing software in a room full of telephone order takers. My requests for a quieter office were rebuffed and only granted when I offered to quit.
I took the office, finished the software, and quit.
They are cool. A bunch of them were stationed at an Air National Guard base near my house and they would frequently fly overhead. Eventually they moved elsewhere; which is just as well. They are noisy too.
A lot of this depends on the organization, its perceived needs and the personalities involved. No doubt some of the answers you get here will be helpful, but I would focus on the particulars. The first question is whether the organization actually needs a new language or whether you just want to use a new language.
Depending on the environment, the change will bring its own set of difficulties and those will need to be addressed. Sometimes, it's a matter of the people involved. For instance, you are the only one passionate about a new language and others are not or is willing to learn and others are not, etc, then you suddenly have a new problem that may not have existed before, including having to support your colleagues through the transition.
As for arguments, etc, those should arise from your situation. If the current system is not working, make that clear. You may have to repeat yourself to get the point across.
But do your homework first. Know what's broken and how your suggestion will fix it. Know the advantages of the current system and the distadvantages of the new one.
"Trying something new" does not seem like a good reason; surely there's a reason why you use language X?
As a one time wealthy, educated black person, I take offence at this characterization.
I live in mostly white neighborhoods because that's where I and my family wanted to live.
It was not to show that we had "made" it or to give the neighbors the opportunity to demonstrate their lack of racism. I think, far too often, people focus on race and don't realize that class distinctions are frequently better indicators.
On that basis, it seems quite reasonable to choose to live amongst people who are similar to me and not amongst those who aren't.
As it turns out, I'm now in South Africa and it's easier to see my point.
Most of my neighbors are black or "colored" but I live near them because it's a nice
neighborhood and not becuase of their race.
I think it's important to remember a fact of humanity: you're generally safer on familiar ground, around people who are similar to yourself. It can be very interesting, exciting, and rewarding to be "the foreigner", but at the same time you should never forget when you're in that position.
This is generally true. However, the United States is a multi ethnic country. So the question is, does this statement apply to all ethnicities, everywhere? The fact is, for a large number of Americans, they are "the foreigner" exactly in that position most of the time.
I am glad to see Csikszenmihalyi on the list as well. Flow is a very powerful concept; we all know it, but understanding it and using it effectively is a different matter entirely.
After reading The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh, I realized that all three books are actually talking about the same subject from different perspectives.
To this list, I would add:
anything by Robert Grudin, but especially:
Time and the Art of Living and The Grace of Great Things
How to solve it by G. Polya
Conceptual Blockbusting by James Adams
Nice to see the Mortimer Adler recommendation as well, but I think his How to Read a Book should be a prerequisite for serious reading.
As I've gotten older, I've come to the conclusion that true understanding requires the kind of depth that comes from knowing one's self intimately. It's a lot harder than it sounds, especially for a technologist.