[Tutor] [Off-topic rant on the title of the "Dummies/Idiots/Morons" book series]

[Kirk Bailey]

Well then, we could do something on the subject. 'The apprentices guide to oop'. 
WE could make it a community effort for the Python croud.

IN fact, I offer my wiki as the place where one and all may do exactly this.
http://www.tinylist.org/piki.py/OopGuide

Danny Yoo wrote:

> 
> On Tue, 12 Aug 2003, R. Alan Monroe wrote:
> 
> 
>>>However, did anyone write 'The big dummy's guide to OOP' or 'OOP for
>>>the compleat idiot'?
>>
>>Not sure, but I hope the same guy writes "Design Patterns for the
>>Compelete Idiot" too, because the few books I've flipped through so far
>>were a little beyond my hobby level.
> 
> 
> [Off topic rant: sorry, have to get this off my chest!]
> 
> 
> False modesty is one thing, but insulting the intelligence of your
> readership is just crude.  The real beef I have about the "Idiot" books is
> the implication that the people who read the books are incurable idiots.
> I shiver whenever I read some title at the bookstore like "Internet
> Security for Idiots".  Do I really want idiots anywhere near my firewalls
> or handling any of my security?
> 
> 
> My attitude might be better if the book series wore titles like:
> 
>     "*Foobar* for the Ignorant"
> 
> because ignorance is very curable.  Paradoxically though, I think
> "ignorant" has an even uglier connotation in English than "idiot", perhaps
> because being an idiot automatically qualifies one to reliquish some
> responsibility: if one is an idiot, he or she has perfectly good reasons
> for not understanding anything.  Someone can be a "lovable idiot", to be
> pitied, but I've seldom heard of someone being a "lovable ignoramus".
> 
> 
> If anything, I'd love to see something like:
> 
>     "The Apprentice's Guide to Learning Python"
> 
> because "apprentice" strikes the right balance of the kind of person who
> doesn't quite have enough experience yet in a particular field, but who is
> very willing to learn.  It makes no statement on the person's expertise in
> anything else, and that's exactly right.  Expertise is not intrinstic, and
> it can be learned with experience.
> 
> 
> Dunno why I get fired up about these issues.  Naming is very important to
> programmers, I guess.  *grin* Please forgive me for my rant.
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
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> 
> 

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Cheers!
         Kirk D Bailey

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