The 2015 Open Source Summer Reading List 31
ectoman writes: Opensource.com has just published its annual Open Source Summer Reading List. This year's edition contains 15 recommendations for books that celebrate open source values and practices. Topics include Python programming, Grace Hopper, open-minded leadership, and teaching children to code. There are also books on the philosophy of open information, an intro to DIY/Maker activities, and even a book about mastering Emacs.
What would you add to this list?
Read books? (Score:1)
Read books about open source? Lol, just read the source code instead.
If you want a real programming challenge... (Score:2)
Try translating ancient BASIC games into Python or another modern language.
http://www.atariarchives.org/basicgames/ [atariarchives.org]
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What I like about Python is, when you're learning it, after a day or two you can guess how to do foo and 90% of the time you're right. With Javascript, you can follow the book, do everything (you think) right, and the damned script will fail for stupid reasons on other machines.
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How would teaching children to code increase inequality? Are you saying that the poor kids are not capable of learning to code? Last I checked, you can teach poor kids as well as rich kids to code, it isn't an inherent quality of socioeconomic status as to whether you can be taught to code.
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How would teaching children to code increase inequality?
Because smart kids learn faster than dumb kids, and although it is non-PC to say so, rich kids tend to be smarter than poor kids. But you should not accept that inequality is inherently bad. If you can pull everyone up, but benefit the rich disproportionately, that is still better than pushing everyone down to the same level.
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I would add that rich kids have more advantages and fewer stressors
Sure, and they also face different social pressures. Studies have shown [educationnext.org] that white/Asian kids become more popular, and have more friends, as their grades improve. Black/Hispanic kids become less popular. By the time they reach high school, too many poor kids have figured out that the best way to make friends and attract the girls, is to be an anti-intellectual smartass. That is a difficult culture to change.
That's odd.. (Score:1)
They spelled Vim wrong. :wq
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They tried adding Vim as well, but they only had place for 15 books.
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You might need a book to learn Emacs, but you only need a cheatsheet to learn Vim.
/and that's only needed to launch vimtutor
Oh Brother.. (Score:1)
Open source values and practices? Is that like posting how you hate MS on every blog you can find? They mentioned teaching children to code. Is that an open source practice? Like no one learnt MASM when they were kids because they were from a poor country or something? The open source community is the least "open minded" community in existence. They are parrots for the most part. For the original question I would pick up any self-help title that helps them deal with being insecure and arrogant. Even if it
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Jean-Michel Smith's science fiction novel _Autonomy_ would be a good summer read. It's about a small group of open source revolutionaries who work to transcend through their own singularity. Unfortunately they are hounded by government agencies and the UN, who want to destroy them without ever understanding what they are and what they offer the world. It's a clever novel that promotes a lot of open source values. http://www.amazon.com/Autonomy... [amazon.com]
Thank you, whoever you are! Free software and the threat of
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Wow. Someone recommends my book (which is on-topic for the discussion). I thank them. And we're both marked trolls.
The critics are right. This site really has gone downhill.
Jean-Michel Smith's science fiction novel _Autonomy_ would be a good summer read. It's about a small group of open source revolutionaries who work to transcend through their own singularity. Unfortunately they are hounded by government agencies and the UN, who want to destroy them without ever understanding what they are and what they offer the world. It's a clever novel that promotes a lot of open source values. http://www.amazon.com/Autonomy... [amazon.com]
Thank you, whoever you are! Free software and the threat of software patents and copyright law to our basic freedoms to create were very much on my mind when I wrote the novel. Very glad you enjoyed it!
Emacs?? (Score:2)
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Didn't you get the irony?
"Mastering Emacs" is a fictional novel.
Teaching your kid to code... (Score:1)