News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by wccrawford on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @09:05AM (#2632919)
Programming isn't about writing. It's about logic. It's a series of instructions for a computer to follow.

The old 'write down how to tie shoes' or 'write down how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich' projects show just how hard it can be to pin down exactly what needs to be done to do seemingly simple tasks.

The writing is merely how to you transmit the logic.

Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by damncabbage on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @09:13AM (#2632936)

  The writing is merely how to you transmit the logic.
The author of the post seems to me to be saying that, given that logic of a great number of programs can be pretty simple, the way you express the logic becomes more of a concern.

Take the following:

  @post.comments
Compare it to:

  $this->post->findDependentRowset('Comment');
Both mean the same thing, but the latter seems like the programming equivalent of purple prose by comparison.
Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by mcantor on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @12:32PM (#2633805)
I disagree so hard. Computer programs should be written primarily for humans to read, and only incidentally to be executed by computers. The connection between writing and programming is vital: they are both the practice of expressing structured ideas. It has nothing to do with the computer. It has nothing to do with the English language, or Vim, or Word. It's about starting with an idea and hacking away at it, removing ambiguities and possibilities, until only something unique remains.
Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by jamesbritt on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @07:54PM (#2635467)
I disagree so hard. Computer programs should be written primarily for humans to read, and only incidentally to be executed by computers.

The funny this is that the same is also true for mathematics.

Mathematicians writing proofs and theorems are communicating with other people, not (usually) with machines.

Mathematical notation is s means of human-to-human communication. Yet anything but the most trivial math soon becomes inscrutable to the untrained. As far as I can tell, mathematicians are mostly happy with this. The language used allows for precise, compact expression of complex (i.e structured) ideas. That understanding requires training and rigor is not considered inherently bad.

For whatever reasons the same terseness and concision is derided by many programmers who seem to believe that ease of understanding by the moderately skilled is highly important.

Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by sp332 on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @10:14AM (#2633143)
Unless you're designing your own ICs and then programming them in machine code, there's some amount of logic and knowledge built-in already. I don't have to explain to the computer how to add two numbers together, or how to take a square root, or sort a list. It is necessary to understand the vocabulary that the computer already has. That's what OP meant by learning idioms: I can either painstakingly describe how to make a sandwich, or I can just say "make a PB&J" and you know what I mean.
Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by mckoss on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @11:02AM (#2633368)
I think the point that OP is trying to make is about skill acquisition. He argues you can't learn to program well merely by learning programming concepts. Rather, you must immerse yourself in reading and writing real programs.
Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by wccrawford on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @01:50PM (#2634190)
I thought that was going to be the point, too, but I read it and I couldn't find anywhere that he stated anything like that.

And I agree with that. The best way to get better at something is to do it. Other things can help you along and accelerate your improvement, but they don't work on their own. You have to do it.

Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by MediaBehavior on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @09:26AM (#2632986)
And is not (good) writing also about logic - even though sometimes it's fuzzy or the (twisted) logic of human psychology?

Writing requires "logicking out" the likely responses of the reader - and the pseudologic of parsing by the human brain (see Dan Ariely's "Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces that Shape Our Decisions").

Re:"My current theory is that programming is quite literally... by ignifero on Wednesday June 08, 2011 @09:39AM (#2633023)
Are you not contradicting yourself here?