jwoertink · August 29, 2015 13:58
diff --git a/gistfile1.txt b/gistfile1.txt
 The article is titled "No Three-month Course can teach you how to code". It should be titled "No three-month course can turn you into a rock-star Software Engineer" because that's what it's actually saying.


 "Student X took Course Y and in a mere three months became an amazing developer now working for SuperStartup earning a salary far above the national average."

  - This sentence is misleading. It implies that Student X became an amazing dev after only 3 months of doing Course Y. That's rarely ever the case, though this sentence could be true. It's more like "Student X had a super high passion for learning, and writing code, and tried to learn on his own, but needed some help. Student X took Course Y for 3 months, then worked his ass off over the next 2 years to land a position with SuperStarup earning a salaray far above the national average. It wasn't an easy course, but was the shortest path to success." I guess adding all the extra details wouldn't have made for good reading.
  

 "these coding crash courses advertise a simple and easy path"

  - Having been through an ACTUAL bootcamp (U.S.M.C) I'm pretty sure the term "bootcamp" comes from the fact that's it's not easy. Nothing rewarding in life worth doing is easy. 
  

 "the reality is there’s no three-month course (intensive or otherwise) that can magically turn someone into a top engineer."

  - I completely agree with this statement. There's also no three-month football training camp that can turn you into an NFL player. Nor is there any three-month cooking class that can turn you into Gordon Ramsey. I haven't seen a dev bootcamp that claims to make software engineers in three months, though I'm sure some douch out there is claiming to do so. 
  

 "which promise to turn you into a marketable developer"

  - This is not the same as promising to turn you into a top tier software engineer. Now,a Jr. front-end dev that can take on brochure sites, handle setting up wordpress themes, and building basic rails sites on the other sounds pretty marketable for a webshop, or starting up your own small project.
  

 "Top companies expect you to know what a recent comp-sci graduate would know, which could include SQL vs. NoSQL databases, the time complexity of some algorithm, or how to implement binary search."

  - 1. Why does someone need to apply at a "top" company immediately after graduating. What happened to starting at the bottom? 
  - 2. WTF is binary search? (being facetious) I have a comp-sci degree, and 8 years experience building sites, and have never once been asked in an interview. We never covered this in any of my classes. This is something you just learn as you go. I would never expect a jr dev to understand how to implement binary search.
  - 3. If you don't know why you should use NoSQL, then don't use it. I know really good developers that still make the mistake of using the wrong tool for the job. Hell, I know construction workers that use the wrong tool for the job. It's just called experience, and a 4yr comp sci degree does not give you experience. 
  

 "Many companies pass over candidates without a formal degree in computer science before reading on"

  - In Vegas? nope... In Phoenix? nope... In Dallas? nope... In Miami? nope... In San Francisco? probably... Case in point? move. It's cheaper elsewhere anyway, and there's more job opportunities.


 ** Also to note. The author interchanbly uses "self-taught engineer" and "self-taught developer". These are not the same. I'm self taught at plumbing and wiring outlets, hanging ceiling fans, and surround sound. I'm in no way qualified to be a contractor, or architect, but I can get shit done at a low level. You can be a good developer, and not be an engineer. You may not be able to architect the softawre for scalability, and performance, but you can be given a task like adding in "connect to facebook", or "make a search box" with no issues.


 Teaching is hard. Teaching software is harder. My daughter had a shitty teacher once, and she came home from school confused about some math. I explained it in 5 minutes, and she was able to teach a friend. If you take a 3 month dev bootcamp from a shitty teacher, and the class is easy, and you only spend the time in class with what the teacher tells you, then you've learned nothing after 3 months. On the other hand, if you take the class, and 5 weeks in you go home pissed off each night because it's hard, and you're putting in 60+ hours a week, and the teacher is doing their job, after 3 months you will be night & day difference.

 DevPoint Labs is a 11 week dev bootcamp course. The goal isn't to make Sr level software engineers starting at 100k. It's to give a person with 0 programming knowledge an insight into how to become a developer, and how to learn to be a good developer. Actually becoming that good developer is up to you. It's a "Here's the road you need to take. Here's the tools you'll need to go down this road. Here's how you actually travel down this road. Now go do it." Think of it like riding a bike. The class is the training wheels. Completing the course only means taking the training wheels off. Doesn't mean you'll be a pro BMX racer. My "training wheels" was $50,000 and 4 years of my life. I think ~$10k & 3~4 months is a better option for training wheels by leaps and bounds.
	The article is titled "No Three-month Course can teach you how to code". It should be titled "No three-month course can turn you into a rock-star Software Engineer" because that's what it's actually saying.


	"Student X took Course Y and in a mere three months became an amazing developer now working for SuperStartup earning a salary far above the national average."

	- This sentence is misleading. It implies that Student X became an amazing dev after only 3 months of doing Course Y. That's rarely ever the case, though this sentence could be true. It's more like "Student X had a super high passion for learning, and writing code, and tried to learn on his own, but needed some help. Student X took Course Y for 3 months, then worked his ass off over the next 2 years to land a position with SuperStarup earning a salaray far above the national average. It wasn't an easy course, but was the shortest path to success." I guess adding all the extra details wouldn't have made for good reading.


	"these coding crash courses advertise a simple and easy path"

	- Having been through an ACTUAL bootcamp (U.S.M.C) I'm pretty sure the term "bootcamp" comes from the fact that's it's not easy. Nothing rewarding in life worth doing is easy.


	"the reality is there’s no three-month course (intensive or otherwise) that can magically turn someone into a top engineer."

	- I completely agree with this statement. There's also no three-month football training camp that can turn you into an NFL player. Nor is there any three-month cooking class that can turn you into Gordon Ramsey. I haven't seen a dev bootcamp that claims to make software engineers in three months, though I'm sure some douch out there is claiming to do so.


	"which promise to turn you into a marketable developer"

	- This is not the same as promising to turn you into a top tier software engineer. Now,a Jr. front-end dev that can take on brochure sites, handle setting up wordpress themes, and building basic rails sites on the other sounds pretty marketable for a webshop, or starting up your own small project.


	"Top companies expect you to know what a recent comp-sci graduate would know, which could include SQL vs. NoSQL databases, the time complexity of some algorithm, or how to implement binary search."

	- 1. Why does someone need to apply at a "top" company immediately after graduating. What happened to starting at the bottom?
	- 2. WTF is binary search? (being facetious) I have a comp-sci degree, and 8 years experience building sites, and have never once been asked in an interview. We never covered this in any of my classes. This is something you just learn as you go. I would never expect a jr dev to understand how to implement binary search.
	- 3. If you don't know why you should use NoSQL, then don't use it. I know really good developers that still make the mistake of using the wrong tool for the job. Hell, I know construction workers that use the wrong tool for the job. It's just called experience, and a 4yr comp sci degree does not give you experience.


	"Many companies pass over candidates without a formal degree in computer science before reading on"

	- In Vegas? nope... In Phoenix? nope... In Dallas? nope... In Miami? nope... In San Francisco? probably... Case in point? move. It's cheaper elsewhere anyway, and there's more job opportunities.


	** Also to note. The author interchanbly uses "self-taught engineer" and "self-taught developer". These are not the same. I'm self taught at plumbing and wiring outlets, hanging ceiling fans, and surround sound. I'm in no way qualified to be a contractor, or architect, but I can get shit done at a low level. You can be a good developer, and not be an engineer. You may not be able to architect the softawre for scalability, and performance, but you can be given a task like adding in "connect to facebook", or "make a search box" with no issues.


	Teaching is hard. Teaching software is harder. My daughter had a shitty teacher once, and she came home from school confused about some math. I explained it in 5 minutes, and she was able to teach a friend. If you take a 3 month dev bootcamp from a shitty teacher, and the class is easy, and you only spend the time in class with what the teacher tells you, then you've learned nothing after 3 months. On the other hand, if you take the class, and 5 weeks in you go home pissed off each night because it's hard, and you're putting in 60+ hours a week, and the teacher is doing their job, after 3 months you will be night & day difference.

	DevPoint Labs is a 11 week dev bootcamp course. The goal isn't to make Sr level software engineers starting at 100k. It's to give a person with 0 programming knowledge an insight into how to become a developer, and how to learn to be a good developer. Actually becoming that good developer is up to you. It's a "Here's the road you need to take. Here's the tools you'll need to go down this road. Here's how you actually travel down this road. Now go do it." Think of it like riding a bike. The class is the training wheels. Completing the course only means taking the training wheels off. Doesn't mean you'll be a pro BMX racer. My "training wheels" was $50,000 and 4 years of my life. I think ~$10k & 3~4 months is a better option for training wheels by leaps and bounds.
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