Comment A 103-yeard old granny orca ? Before the CA coast? (Score 1) 194
Now I know where my manager spends her holidays....
Karl Popper, "Objective Knowledge", in order to make you understand what the dangers of induction and inductive reasoning are.
John von Neumann & Oskar Morgenstern "Theory of Games and Economic Behavior", a brain-trainer that will leave you, after having read it, much more induced to first simulate, then code !
Peano, "Calcolo Geometrico", containing his famous axioms for Boolean algebra. There is a good translation from the year 2000 by Kannenberg, titled "Geometric Calculus"
Leslie Lamport, "Time, Clocks and the Ordering of Events in a Distributed System" -- you will never think the same again about synchronization and time-related problems....
And so on. All classics from the 20th century, giving the necessary background in computing and logics fundamentals that I so often miss in today's fresh graduates. The oldest text, by Peano is even from 1888, but still actual today !
Julia is a high-level dynamic programming language designed to address the requirements of high-performance numerical and scientific computing while also being effective for general purpose programming.Julia's core is implemented in C and C++, its parser in Scheme, and the LLVM compiler framework is used for just-in-time generation of machine code.
Source: wikipedia entry on "Julia programming language", called on May 15, 08h56m CEST
Walks like an interpreted language, looks like an interpreted language, quacks like an interpreted language... could it be an interpreted language ?
@Wisecat I think the answer upon both your questions is "yes". The trick, in the first question, would IMHO lie in "selling" yourself. And two major ingredients of that magic soup would be enthusiasm, as well as "honing" your CV for the vacancy. I don't mean outright lying, though. But one can always ask what a HR person, what a recruiting manager really wants to read and wants to see. Often, they are like children: if they whine for a chocolate, then give them a chocolate - or convince them there is chocolate in what you are about to give them. The results can be.... interesting.
And yes, specializing in one language would be a good idea, especially at the point where you are now. ADA would be a bit risky, though having the potential to land you that great technical computing job. In your case, I would dive deeply into C++ and the more advanced programming concepts. I did with Java, and it made me break through, what with barriers, semaphores, locks, lock-free waiting, queueing, concurrent programming, dependency injection etc. etc. The chance I got was a job opening asking for exactly that, and I had prepared for such a chance exactly by specializing. Remember: luck does not simply come to you out of the blue. You prepare for luck to hit, creating the conditions for it to manifest itself. And then - a "jack-of-all-trades" could very well grow bold and sell himself as an assistant project manager, a configuration manager, or a technical product owner. You might want to think "up", think different.
However - here is an offer. I have changed jobs so often that I have grown an eye for CVs. My email address is above this post. If you want me to take a look at your CV, just ping me.
Your age does not play as large a role as you may think. In 2004, I had 13+ years of experience in pure software on the odometer, but - due to mental illness - first lost my job, then became homeless. I did the only thing I was still able to do: I walked. All over Europe. Homeless, but not giving in. Once back in my home country, in 2006, I managed to settle down again: the clouds in my head had cleared, and a large aerospace constructor gave me chance. I was 39 years old, and it started a great ride in my career, one that I am still on.
What I did, you can do. As to the language: there is not really a problem discernible to me. You probably already master C, or a C-like language. The jump to C++ is not that hard, in that case. Otherwise, you might want to consider ADA, a stunningly elegant language that could very well land you jobs with e.g. Rockwell, Boeing etc. etc. ( assuming you are in the USA ). Good luck, and do not forget: it is not your success that counts - it is the fact that you keep trying.
I don't know about the US, but here in Europe there are quite lively user and enthusiast communities around the older models. Especially the old Saab 900, the one with the "beak" spoiler on the back, became iconic and still stands, as an image, for everything Saab had to offer. It is loved not for a small part by women, BTW. There is an informal market for spare parts, paint jobs, engine tuning etc. etc., especially in Britain. I recently saw a black 9000 Aero, in perfect state and with around 100,000 kms on the tachometer, being sold by a dealership for around € 8000. Saab is very much alive
I fell in love with 9000 a long time ago, as it has such rocket-on-wheels qualities which are amazing for a large, heavy sedan. When you hit the gas pedal on a highway ramp you are literally pushed back into the deep leather seats. It is not without a reason that the Swedish police had them as patrol cars for a long time. The thing is a beast of a car - a very, very reliable beast.
Arithmetic is being able to count up to twenty without taking off your shoes. -- Mickey Mouse
