Just good advice? = WAS("Re: getting system date")

[David Broadwell]

"Alex Martelli" <aleax at aleax.it> wrote
>> And if it's trying to mimic a list then treating it like a list isn't

>> an end of the world thing ...

> Exactly: indeed, it's what SHOULD happen whenever feasible.

I'll try to keep that in mind, but I'll admit that it's a new concept.

>> That's called troubeshooting, and instinct and 'feel' are part of

>> that data to troubshoot with.

> Right. For some reason it doesn't surprise me when e.g. a good auto

> mechanic does it with my car (because I wouldn't know even where to

> START doing the same thing myself;-), but it does, pleasantly, when

> a good sysadm does it with my system or network (because I do have a

> vague idea and amateur-level experience doing that sort of thing:-).

*lol* It's VERY sad when a 'entry level' Linux sysadmin takes over a

full scale NT admin position for 6 months, and FIXES the persistent DNS

problems that the NT admins never could ... It was easy too, just had

to scriptly interface the records on the master UNIX dns against the

nt. Turns out it was the _ that did in the nt ... not part of the RFC.

Ok easy as in straightforward and fun not as in easy.

> grep on windows? with cygwin or an add-on I guess;-).

It's a binary that I've been hanging on to for dear life along with

vi and a few others. Far more impressive output that the Winblows

search tool ... Actually, for the experience, I'm working slowly on

a python re-implement of it. Windows has SO many weaknesses. Printing,

searching ... mostly in things that one needs to use to get work done.

> But yes, the Python online docs AND the Tools and Demo directories

> are a crucial resource -- the Nutshell is necessarily selective

Hm munchy, light reading. *snicker*

> BTW, I heartily recommend getting the Python source distribution

> even if you have zero interest in installing from it, just for the

> educational value -- it includes more demos and tools, all precious

> examples, than the binary installer does. And THAT point is one I

> make in the Nutshell, too, because most Windows users cannot know

> what they're missing when they only get the binary installer...

Personally i think it's a tad narrow to think that it will ALL be

in the docs. But perhaps that is simply due to having written some

(other) documentation before. Just draw a parallel, how good are

(global) you at documenting your coding endeavors? I know I suck at

it, especially when it's just intended for me.

Still, sage advice.

> ... take this up with my editor -- I suspect there were many times

> when SHE had substantial trouble realizing I'm a writer, too;-}

Well considering that I had commented to friends that I thought you

should be a writer, glad I was right. That you authored exactly the

book I will be buying is purely a bonus.

--

David Broadwell

(Today's funny spell-checker replacement is; to computers, sysadmin =
sesame)