Hello scienceforums

[CraigD]

I just stumbled upon this forum, and having a good feeling about it, joined.

 

I’m a 45 years old. I’ve mostly been doing the same thing – writing procedural computer code – since I was 15. Between 15 and 45, I managed to pick up a BS in Math, while enjoying to varying degrees various occupations, including tearing up and remaking sidewalks, teaching introductory college Physical Science (as a kind of sub-junior faculty, with naught but a BS!) Around 1986, I discovered that I could make an agreeable living programming, and have had no other substantial source of financial income since. I like it much more than tearing up sidewalks, and slightly less than teaching.

 

Lately, I’ve been coming to emotional terms with the realization that I am not going to grow up to be the smartest human being who ever lived, and the somewhat grimmer one that I’m likely, from this age on, to be slightly dumber with each passing year. With that has come a greater appreciation for the value of friendliness, so a forum describing itself as “the friendliest science forum on the internet” is irresistible to me.

 

I’m looking forward to an enjoyable exchange of ideas here at scienceforums.com.

[Queso]

welcome to hypography man!

[GAHD]

Welcolm aboard, Craig.

 

What programming do you do?

[Dark Mind]

...Lately, I’ve been coming to emotional terms with the realization that I am not going to grow up to be the smartest human being who ever lived, and the somewhat grimmer one that I’m likely, from this age on, to be slightly dumber with each passing year. With that has come a greater appreciation for the value of friendliness, so a forum describing itself as “the friendliest science forum on the internet” is irresistible to me.

 

I’m looking forward to an enjoyable exchange of ideas here at scienceforums.com.

Kind of an unpleasant realization :D. We hope we can help reverse the process of becoming "slightly dumber with each passing year." and I'm sure you'll find plenty of friendly people to interact with inside this forum. Looking forward to hearing from you!:)

 

By the way, I doubt that process of "dumbening" is gonna kick in quite so soon, we have members that are in their sixties and still regularly participate in heated debates. Don't fear for your intellect so soon! ;) By the way I'm Brian, I'm sixteen, and I'll be serving you tonight :D.

 

Enjoy your stay here! :D

[CraigD]

Welcolm aboard, Craig.

 

What programming do you do?

Over the years, nearly every kind (with the exception of imbedded systems - I've left no mark in any sort of ROM-using appliance, controller, or what-have-you) from hand-assembled code for video games to unusual language compilers and interpreters written in unusual high-level languages. I've enought of a smattering of stuff like Smalltalk, Lisp, C++, Axis (!) and the awful world of Visual Studio to be able to fake expertise in most any kind of coding I come across.

 

Since the late ‘80s, I’ve worked mostly in the M[uMPS], AKA Cache, language, writing clinical and business healthcare applications. I most enjoy “meta” application programming, that is, writing development tools and utilities that allow other people to write actual applications, though can’t manage to do that full time, and probably shouldn’t try, since it’s good to keep sharp as an end-user application developer.

 

I’m a true believer and apostle for M or something like it, which is to say I imaging a world in which procedural coding still exists, but all code is source code, and the gobs of cheap CPU we all have is spent on interpreters, not awful, clunky APIs. I’ve been throught the meat-grinder of language user group development committees, though, so I’m a mostly a closet/cocktail party apostle, not a serious, venture capitol-chasing one.

[GAHD]

You'd have a lot of fun with out mod team's leader Killean, send him a PM sometime I'm shure he'd love to talk tech.

[Dark Mind]

Very true, you seem to have a vast knowledge of computer coding! Maybe you'll be helping our guests in the Computer and Technology forum :).