Re: Seeking computer-programming job (Sunnyvale, CA)
Lew wrote:
Either that or the book he bought is good enough to convince him not
to learn Lisp.
eric-and-jane-smith wrote:
You mean bad enough.
No, I really don't. I am in the habit of saying exactly what I mean, for the
most part, and this was one of those times. I really don't think I was at all
unclear in my statement that it would be subject to misinterpretation.
It's not likely that there's any Lisp book that tries
to convince people not to learn Lisp. So, if it's a good book, it's far
more likely to convince him to learn it. A bad book can convince him not
to learn it, in the same sense that a bad math teacher can convince
students that they don't like math.
A good book will give an accurate picture of the language, its capabilities
and its shortcomings. Whether it's trying to convince someone not to use the
language or to use it is irrelevant; an honest assessment might well convince
someone not to use it.
I certainly have encountered many informative references for languages, pretty
much all of which were partisan to their respective topics, that convinced me
not to use those languages. No reflection on the languages, necessarily, it's
just that good information allowed me to make an informed assessment whether I
should invest time and energy in them.
--
Lew