NYCPHP Meetup

[Urb LeJeune]

>1. What's required to become certified (obvious);

         To you is obvious, to me not so obvious :-) I know I sound 
like a broken record but to me
programming is not about syntax it's about logic and problem solving.

         Many years ago Edsger Dijkstr, one of the giants of computer 
science, wrote an article
suggesting that a first course in computer programming be taught 
without using a computer.
At the time I thought he was nuts, but after teaching introductory 
programming for many years
I agree with the concept. Especially in the beginning, syntax get is 
the way of solving problems.
Any non-trivial problem will have multiple solutions. How does one 
determine if their approach
is the "best" solution to the problem and not simple a solution that 
works. In my experience
elegant (read simple) solutions do not happen while you sit at a 
keyboard but rather sitting in
a quite place with a pad and pencil.

         If you've never read "Programming Pearls" by Jon Bentley, 
beg, borrow, or steal a copy
and read it. It will change the way you look at programming.


Urb

Dr. Urban A. LeJeune, President
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