[Tutor] New blog that has solution for python programs

Mats Wichmann mats at wichmann.us
Fri Jun 2 21:07:30 EDT 2017


> I don't think "what the authors might want" is the only factor here. 
> Personally, I think these programming challenge sites probably do more 
> harm than good, discouraging people that they're not good enough to be a 
> programmer because they can't solve the (often exceedingly tricky) 
> problems on their own. I think they're often dick-measuring contests, 
> for elite programmers to show off and sneer at "lesser mortals" who 
> can't solve the problems.
> 
> In the real world, nobody has to solve these sorts of problems under the 
> constraints given. In real life programming, you get to look for 
> existing solutions, you get to consult with your colleagues, pass ideas 
> back and forth, etc. If you need a solution to X, and your colleague 
> already solved it for another project, you say "Hey Fred, I'm stealing 
> your code" and if Fred gets upset you talk to his project manager who 
> tells Fred to cooperate.

Indeed... they're a slightly tamer variant of the even worse "clickbait"
articles like "how to answer the 10 top Python interview questions", not
a single one I've ever seen being something I'd expect to be part of a
competent interview process.

However, I still don't like the idea of answering people's quizzes. I
won't violently disagree with Steven's viewpoint, however.


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