Re:What is your recommended beginner's hacker training course?
by reitzensteinm on Thursday May 10, 2007 @08:50PM
(#21209)
As much as I think SwellJoe has nailed the answer to this question, I can't help but think I disagree with the premise. If you've never coded before, I would suggest that you ask yourself a very difficult question - how do you know that you want to become a great hacker?
Now, I don't consider myself a great hacker (I honestly don't know how good I am, and I question anyone that would tell you otherwise), but I do believe I know a bit about how I learned and can offer some advice.
Follow your natural curiosity, step by step. That's it. If you have questions, answer them. If you wonder how is done, try to build it or create it yourself and find out - if you can't do it yet, pick off a smaller piece of the problem you're interested in. If there's some assertion in a field that you disagree with, try to prove it wrong, because either you'll learn that you're wrong (likely) or you'll contribute something to the field (unlikely, but possible). Either way you win.
But the key here is, just follow your curiosity wherever it goes. It won't necessarily be towards becoming a hacker. If you find yourself delaying code that you know needs to be written in your plan to become a hacker by slacking off and reading up on organic chemistry all day, then that's not actually slacking off - that's telling you something.
I don't think there are many people on this planet that can truly be great at more than one thing. Feynman was, for instance, but I don't think I've ever met anyone in person. If you find yourself trying to become a hacker as a 'day job' but you do rocket science for fun, well, I'm sorry, but chances are you'd make a great rocket scientist but a lousy hacker and you're going against your own nature to try to become what you aren't.
But the key thing about simply following your curiosity is that you'll end up finding something that you are good at, you enjoy, and if you're at all smart you'll eventually become world class at it. If you are right about wanting to be a hacker, you will get there! You may have to have a day job while you figure out what you really want to become, but there are worse things.
Sorry, I'm ranting a bit... but I hope this helps.
Now, I don't consider myself a great hacker (I honestly don't know how good I am, and I question anyone that would tell you otherwise), but I do believe I know a bit about how I learned and can offer some advice.
Follow your natural curiosity, step by step. That's it. If you have questions, answer them. If you wonder how is done, try to build it or create it yourself and find out - if you can't do it yet, pick off a smaller piece of the problem you're interested in. If there's some assertion in a field that you disagree with, try to prove it wrong, because either you'll learn that you're wrong (likely) or you'll contribute something to the field (unlikely, but possible). Either way you win.
But the key here is, just follow your curiosity wherever it goes. It won't necessarily be towards becoming a hacker. If you find yourself delaying code that you know needs to be written in your plan to become a hacker by slacking off and reading up on organic chemistry all day, then that's not actually slacking off - that's telling you something.
I don't think there are many people on this planet that can truly be great at more than one thing. Feynman was, for instance, but I don't think I've ever met anyone in person. If you find yourself trying to become a hacker as a 'day job' but you do rocket science for fun, well, I'm sorry, but chances are you'd make a great rocket scientist but a lousy hacker and you're going against your own nature to try to become what you aren't.
But the key thing about simply following your curiosity is that you'll end up finding something that you are good at, you enjoy, and if you're at all smart you'll eventually become world class at it. If you are right about wanting to be a hacker, you will get there! You may have to have a day job while you figure out what you really want to become, but there are worse things.
Sorry, I'm ranting a bit... but I hope this helps.