One of my favorite technical words is “noodling”. I have my students noodle around with code to see how it works – have them break it and than fix it again to get control.
I often noodle around with code when working on a project, trying to stretch things a little more, trying to find out “What happens if I do this?”. This is especially useful when working with CSS and a new web site design.
At South by Southwest I heard Jared Spool from User Interface Engineering talk about design and user interfaces. I’m on their mailing list now and today he introduced me to another technical term: hunkering.
Here’s a excerpt from his article:
The behavior of hunkering was the same [for all types of people]:
- They lay out whatever physical pieces they have — raw materials,
sketches, and images they’d collected.
- They work to put things close to where they’d be in their final
form, relative to the other pieces.
- Then they step back and ponder it for a while.
- In some cases, they walk around to view it from a different
angle, to see what it looked like from another perspective.
- Then they start back up to work.
This can be done in any type of business from web designer, to programmer, to cabinet maker, to dress designer.
Hunkering also ties in with a book I’m reading,
A Whole New Mind, by Daniel Pink. Daniel talks about using both sides of the brain, both the analytic left side as well as the more artistic, free-flowing right-side in order to deal with challenges we face in today’s world. No longer can we just be analytical thinkers working a problem in a straight line. Instead, we have to become more artistic thinkers, looking at things as a whole and getting ideas from other disciplines. Jared’s term “hunkering” describes how to do this process in a very real manner.
So, next time you are starting a project, before you start writing code or hammering nails, do some noodling around and hunkering to kick your right brain into gear.
Here’s Jared’s article: Hunkering: Putting Disorientation in the Design Process.
I’ve been creating some demo movies as part of my on-line classes and have posted them out on blip.tv.
I thought you might like to look at the series. I’ll be adding new ones on a regular basis.
Here’s a link showing all the videos available out on Blip.tv.
I’m using ScreenFlow to create my onscreen videos. This is an amazing program that allows me to capture video and sound and edit using scrolling and panning. Mac only. What is displayed here is only the video portion of the more complete tutorials I offer as part of my online and face2face courses.
The videos shots of my whiteboard talks are taken using a very inexpensive ($150) Aiptek HD1080P pocket-size video. Chad Peterson, one of my students is working on the editing. These resulted from one of my online students asking me to record my entire class. That is very difficult, getting good sound, but I thought I’d try some simple videos that focused on specific concepts to see how enhance the learning activities for each module.
I’d be interested in your comments on how useful these would be to you as a student. Thanks!
Every semester I get frustrated emails from students containing the phrase, “I just spent ____ hours on this and couldn’t figure it out.” Here’s a short excerpt that I usually include with my reply:
I can sure understand how frustrating it is to do something without success for so many hours. But, next time something like this happens, and after the first half hour, stop and ask for help, do something different, or find another resource. It depends on the problem but, normally if you are spending more than a half hour trying to solve a problem than your problem-solving skills need some work.
Here’s a checklist that will help you build up your problem-solving skills and hopefully speed your way to solutions:
- Stay focused. Don’t try to multi-task. Behavioral scientistists have proven that trying to do multiple things at once makes all of the tasks suffer.
- Simplify the problem. Web page not changing? Try typing in some odd letters (XYZ) in the middle of the page to see if they display. If they don’t you might have been spending the last hour typing in one file and looking at another!
- Keep track of what you have tried. Write it down so you aren’t repeating the same thing over and over and over. Be organized and consistent on how you look for a solution. Don’t just shotgun things over and over and over.
- After each failure try something different. If one combination doesn’t work think of something different to do. (Use number keys instead of number pad, check caps lock, type out the password in a simple editor to see the results…)
- Google is your friend Do a web search with the error message or a short phrase so you can see if others have had a similar problem.
- Think about the problem differently. Maybe what is broken is something completely separate from what you are focused on! Think of what else might be causing the problem.
- Go do something else or take a short nap After a set period of time, stop what you are doing and do something else. I usually give myself 1/2 hour to an hour depending on the problem.) Go take a shower, or sit down with a cup of tea, coffee, or pop and sit quietly, go take a 15 minute nap. Let other alternative solutions come to mind and then jot them down. Don’t force them, they will run away like minnows in a clear pool. Set a time limit for this activity. You should have 3 or 4 alternative things to do in 15 minutes of sitting quietly.
No, playing video games does not count here. That just focuses you on other problems that may be more interesting (at the moment) to solve.
- Imagine what the solution or success looks like. If you don’t believe something will work, it probably won’t.
Photo from iStockPhoto.com. I tell my Java students that this is what the Java compiler looks like :-)
Every once in awhile the power of the Web still surprises me. Recently, reading David Pogue’s blog from the New York Times, I discovered a real gold mine: The TED Conference. Technology, Entertainment, and Design.
Every year some of the brightest people in the world meet in Monterey, CA for a few days to talk about what they are doing. It costs $4,400 to attend a conference and the 2008 conference is already sold out. Speakers are not paid but get to attend the conference for free. (You can also request an invitation from their website based on your enthusiasm, ideas, and success in your field.)
A little pricey you say? But wait, they’ve put some of the presentations on line. You can watch the videos of some very amazing presentations . Each is about 20 minutes (although there are a few three minute specials), and you will be thinking about them for days. The TED videos are especially effective if you watch two or three in one setting. I usually catch a couple before I go to sleep at night, just to give my brain something to think about in my dreams.
Here’s a quote for the upcoming 2008 conference, The Big Questions:
"Many people come to TED seeking something out of the ordinary. A chance to mentally recharge. A chance to step back and consider the really big stuff that’s happening. A chance to understand life in a richer way. "
Check out these videos and you’ll see what they mean.
For those taking classes here at South Central College, working on a two-year degree can be very rewarding. Here’s the top ten highest paying jobs for two-year degrees. This list is based on the facts from the Bureau of Labor. Notice that Computer Specialist is number one at $59,000. Pretty nice salary for a two-year degree!
How about job availability? Our faculty in Computer Careers gets two to three calls from employers for Web Programming, Network Support, and Computer Programmer every week. There’s a lot of jobs out there right now. They all want motivated people with problem-solving and communication skills as well as computer/programming expertise. It looks like this will continue for several years to come.
Technorati : salary job “computer specialist”
Del.icio.us : salary job “computer specialist”
Being a one-language programmer isn’t good enough any more. In today’s world you need to have the right “product mix” to stay in the job market. Here is a story from eWeek.com highlighting the ten most popular languages along with how many jobs are available for each based on the current jobs out on dice.com, one of the more popular tech job sites.
Java and C# rate the highest with a total of over 19,500 jobs. Keep in mind that C# is the “Java” as part of Microsoft Visual Studio. If you learn Java and you’ll be able to easily write code in either language. Another hot language to know right now is VB.NET with 2,090 jobs.
What the article doesn’t cover is the future… In the next 10 years 30-50% of the COBOL programmers in the USA are going to retire. When I first heard these numbers, several years ago, I thought that the mainframe companies would convert over to the languages that are now common on the PC platforms, but this is not proving to be the case. According to the IT people at Wells Fargo Bank, COBOL be around for a long time to come.
Chad Fowler, the author of “My Job Went to India – 52 Ways to Save Your Job” adds to this discussion. He points out that “Java and .NET programmers are a dime a dozen in India. As a .NET programmer, you may find yourself competing with tens of thousands of more people in the market than you would if you were, for example, a Python [or Ruby On Rails} programmer.” He points out that, “You don’t find mainstream Indian offshoring companies jumping on unconventional technologies. They aren’t first-movers. They generally don’t take chances.”
He recommends competing in the job market in which there is actually lower demand globally and focusing on niche technologies such as COBOL in the banking industry or Ruby-On-Rails, which is the cutting edge (right now) in web programming.
Does this mean you shouldn’t take Java or VB.NET? Not really. These languages are considered the base knowledge for today’s programmers. And, once you understand how Java and VB.NET works you can pick up other languages like Ruby On Rails much more quickly.
The key is not to focus on any particular language but to learn the concepts that are common to all programming languages. Once you have that base you can adapt quickly and easily to the changing needs of the job market, now, and in the future.
Technorati : jobs languages programming
Del.icio.us : jobs languages programming
Ice Rocket : jobs languages programming
Last July, fifteen high school students participated in the first annual TechNow Programming Camp. For three days they learned how to program using a language called Alice- creating 3-D games and animated movies. Each day, during lunch, employees from the corporate sponsors, Wells Fargo Bank, James Tower, Inc., and Carlson Craft Business Solutions, joined the students and talked about career possibilities. The instructors during the summer camp were Peter Johnson, Tom Edwards from the Computer Careers department here at South Central College, North Mankato campus, and Jeff Seehafer, from GFW High School in Winthrop. The students represented several area high schools including Waseca, GFW, East, St. Clair, and Loyola.
The programming camp was a resounding success and there are plans to expand the camp so more students from different grade levels can participate. If you are interested in next year’s camp contact Peter Johnson peter.johnson@southcentral.edu. Here’s more information about the TechNow initiative.
Here are some shots showing the students during the session and a view of the program named Alice.
The SCC Administration visits the Programming Camp (left to right: Larry Wall, Steve Sletcha, President Keith Stover, W.C. Sanders, Nancy Genelin. )
Rebecca Bohm from Wells Fargo Bank, Minneapolis and Alex Clemons a student at Waseca High School talk about his Alice program.
Technorati : technow programming camp mankato MN South Central College
Del.icio.us : technow programming camp mankato MN South Central College
Ice Rocket : technow programming camp mankato MN South Central College
Buzznet : technow programming camp mankato MN South Central College
For just a minute imagine you are an employer deciding who to hire. Both candidates seem to be excellent programmers. They both interviewed well, making good eye contact and each had a nice strong handshake. The first candidate types 30 word per minute and the other types 90 words per minute. Let’s say the position pays $30/hour… One employee has the potential to produce over 3 times more than the other. Which would you hire?
So, how do you become that 90 wpm person?
I strongly recommend using TuxType, an open-source typing tutor, that is available on SourceForge. You’ll not only improve your typing speed but you’ll have a grand time doing it.
Here’s some tips on increasing your typing speed in 10 minutes.
Cognitive scientists have found out that not all our memory is in our brains. Virtually every cell in our body “remembers” things. Athletes have demonstrated this for years.
You can use this to your advantage by practicing twice each day. First, practice intensely for 10 minutes every night before you go to sleep. 10 minutes. No more. No less. Your brain and muscles will continue processing the information as you sleep. Then when you wake up do the same practice for another 10 minutes. Intensely, with no distractions. This will reinforce what you learned the night before, telling your brain (and each muscle cell) that, “Hey, This is important!”.
Keep doing that seven days a week without fail and you’ll be typing a steady 90 wpm in no time.
Want to customize the practice words?
TuxType uses simple text files for its word list. Look in the folders to find these lists and then make up your own. I made a list of all the HTML tags and several special characters in order to help me increase my speed with the less than, >, and & keys.
Students often describe their learning style by saying, “I’m a slow learner.”
They say it as if it were a bad thing. Then, they quickly add, “But, when I learn something I really learn it.”
This morning I was reading James Zull’s The Art of Changing the Brain which is all about the biology of the brain and how we (teachers) can make learning happen more effectively.
Zull explains how the different parts of the brain handles different learning tasks. The front part is where we develop ideas. Choices, decisions to act, and mental energy are all associated with the front cortex of the brain.
The back part of the brain is where we hold memories of stories, places. It is where our understanding of language is located. Our long-term memory including facts, faces, and experiences are all handled in the back cortext of the brain.
When people reflect they are moving information from the front cortex into the back cortex; they are making connections. Reflection is all about searching for connections (literally connecting all those neurons). It is a physical process. We need time to reflect in order to build the layers of understanding — to really know something.
Many people think faster students are smarter. But, this is not necessarily so. That little add on, “But, when I learn something I really learn it.” is the telling sign. Actually, the better student is the one that reflects and builds connections, and this takes time. It is the difference between surface learning and really knowing about something.
Oh, it’s easy to see how people can become infatuated with learning things quickly. Utilizing the front part of our brain we say: “Yes! Yes! Yes! I’ve got that! What’s next?” It happened, we paid attention. Wow, learning is easy! But, it is the value of time and reflection and the act of moving ideas from the front reactive part of our brain back to the long-term “bank account” that we have in the back cortext that means we are really learning.
Zull tells a great story about Neils Bohr, the physicist who won the Nobel Prize for his work on the structure of atoms. Apparently Bohr was a slow learner. He would have to take someone with him to the theater because he couldn’t follow the plot of a story fast enough. Whoever went with him was required to explain the plot as it went along. Bohr was being busy reflecting, taking the time to see how all the details fit together as a whole, causing him to miss the action or pieces of the plot. His companion was there to fill in the gaps. (Maybe we should all take a companion to our lecture classes!)
So, if you see yourself as a slow learner, don’t belittle yourself. Instead, recognize what is happening inside your brain as you ponder and “noodle” with new concepts. Recognize that your are creating new connections among your millions of brain cells, especially in the back cortex of your brain.
You might want to think about this blog entry for a few days…. and then come back in and post your thoughts, ideas, and reflections. I’d love to hear your stories and experiences about this.
