That's a really interesting (and, in my opinion, negative viewpoint)
I have been a Python developer since 2006/2007 and every time I depart to another community for a while, I return with a ton of new ways to think about problems. Not only that, you'll usually have a newfound appreciation for things in Python you might not have really cared about before (eg decorator syntax)
- Becoming a Rails developer was a game changer. The Pythonistas tout it to be 'magic', but it's really not. It's easy to understand what is going on. Once you use a tool like Rails in more advanced situations – every Python web framework looks like a horse drawn carriage.
- On a related note, reading Eloquent Ruby was one of the most epic nonfiction reading experiences of my life. After reading that book, I rarely see "programming magic" to be magic anymore. I understand it all. A lot of the knowledge from that book translates well to Python too, since Python and Ruby are very similar.
- Learning Clojure and using it day-to-day at FarmLogs has made me think more functional than I did previously.
It's usually not just the language that is going to open your mind - but the frameworks, tools and communities that grow around the language. It's like visiting a new country. You're gonna love certain customs and dislike others.
Anyway... saying you don't have time for something that will open your mind and make you a better programmer sounds like a grumpy old man who's missing out on the world.
Comments
That's a really interesting (and, in my opinion, negative viewpoint)
I have been a Python developer since 2006/2007 and every time I depart to another community for a while, I return with a ton of new ways to think about problems. Not only that, you'll usually have a newfound appreciation for things in Python you might not have really cared about before (eg decorator syntax)
- Becoming a Rails developer was a game changer. The Pythonistas tout it to be 'magic', but it's really not. It's easy to understand what is going on. Once you use a tool like Rails in more advanced situations – every Python web framework looks like a horse drawn carriage.
- On a related note, reading Eloquent Ruby was one of the most epic nonfiction reading experiences of my life. After reading that book, I rarely see "programming magic" to be magic anymore. I understand it all. A lot of the knowledge from that book translates well to Python too, since Python and Ruby are very similar.
- Learning Clojure and using it day-to-day at FarmLogs has made me think more functional than I did previously.
It's usually not just the language that is going to open your mind - but the frameworks, tools and communities that grow around the language. It's like visiting a new country. You're gonna love certain customs and dislike others.
Anyway... saying you don't have time for something that will open your mind and make you a better programmer sounds like a grumpy old man who's missing out on the world.
If I saw your reply before writing mine, I wouldn't have bothered responding :) Absolutely agree with every single word