Ask HN: Programming Curriculum for Non-Geeks?

4 points by alanthonyc 17y ago ↗ HN

My sister works in HR. Yes, evil HR. However, the programmer types actually get along with her because she actually tries to get to know them (apparently, this is unusual in her field).

Anyway, I'm trying to come up with a basic study plan for her so that she can get familiarized with the skillsets that programmers use. The purpose is for her to be able to evaluate people better and get beyond the simple checklist of skills.

Can anyone suggest some things that she can read up on to help with this? I believe some type of primer document in programming and/or design would be best. I don't think she needs to get into heavy coding in order to achieve this goal.

3 comments

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sho 17y ago ↗

Hm, I've introduced Ruby programming to a couple of non-programmers and thought the book "Learn To Program" by Chris Pine was good. It doesn't assume much and starts from the beginning. It's very hands-on, ie, not much theory, but if there's someone available to answer the inevitable questions I thought it worked pretty well (50% success rate).

Good luck! I love teaching if the person is genuinely motivated, it's really rewarding and you end up feeling you understand the subject better yourself just from having to explain it.

voltageek 17y ago ↗

Anyway you cut it, she's probably going to have to pick up some basics coding skills to become familiarized with the skillsets of a programmer. Might want to look at the following books:

The Pragmatic Programmer The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering

And oh yeah,Dilbert & The Tao of Programming for philosophical contemplation.

alanthonyc 17y ago ↗

Thanks, I think I'll give her the books you recommend as a starter. She'll probably dig the more conceptual stuff first.