Ask HN: Is it better to be quick generalist or a slow specialist?

Re:Ask HN: Is it better to be quick generalist or a slow spe... by contravariant on Thursday August 25, 2022 @07:44AM (#32592389)

Perhaps I'm being too contrarian for my own good again, but it seems to me that knowledge that doesn't extend beyond a single tool or programming language isn't very deep in the first place.

The easiest way to quickly pick up new tools and languages is to have a deep understanding of the relevant concepts.

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Re:Ask HN: Is it better to be quick generalist or a slow spe... by sph on Thursday August 25, 2022 @08:20AM (#32592707)

It makes sense. Knowing three similar languages is better than knowing one language three times as deep, because you start to see patterns, similarities and contrasts. It makes you more experienced and able to think outside the box, because you now know what the box looks like.

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Re:Ask HN: Is it better to be quick generalist or a slow spe... by scrapheap on Thursday August 25, 2022 @09:01AM (#32593138)

I would argue that you're better off knowing 3 very different languages than 3 languages that are similar. That way you're more likely to be able tackle a problem with an approach that's suitable.

Or to put it another way, if I've only got 3 hammers of different sizes then everything will still look like a nail :)

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