Computer Programming = Less Forum Presence

[Rasheed]

At this moment, I've started a course in computer programming, to be able to write better embedded (read: Lua) scripts, and possibly external programs to help me (and hopefully others as well) draw animation more efficiently. Anime Studio is great, but it could be so much greater with better tools added to it.

As course material for basic computer science, I'm taking the old video tutorials on the MIT server, Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs; Video Lectures by Hal Abelson and Gerald Jay Sussman. The 20 DivX files took 3 days to download via bit-torrent, and I have burned them onto three DVD disks. Unfortunately, on the Mac, the MIT/GNU Scheme interpreter is only available for OS X 10.4 and higher, and I'm still using 10.3. Therefore, I have to translate the programs to DrScheme, was has a version for OS X 10.3. The video course also has an accompanying book, called Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs.

Simultaneously, I'm learning Scheme through the online book How to Design Programs. This book is more geared towards junior school students, but it is useful for learning simple programming habits and discipline. I don't want to become a sloppy programmer.

Perhaps these programming languages (MIT/GNU Scheme and DrScheme) are a bit removed from practicle programming, such as a script to reduce the number of points in a vector drawing, but I really need the foundation of a computer course to be able to write code that is both functional and efficient.

All this means my contribution to the Scripting forum will be limited in the coming months, as will be the contributions the the AS Forum as a whole. I used to spend some hours per day on the forum, but that will be a little less from now on.

[The400th]

Unfortunately, on the Mac, the MIT/GNU Scheme interpreter is only available for OS X 10.4 and higher, and I'm still using 10.3. Therefore, I have to translate the programs to DrScheme, was has a version for OS X 10.3.

Wow. I guess if you can get it to work, you automatically pass the course.



I'm betting you'll be so inspired by it, you'll actually do MORE scripting while you're learning.

Good luck!

[Rasheed]

There is another reason why MIT/GNU Scheme will not work on my Mac, it is Intel-only, and will never work on a G4 processor.

MIT/GNU Scheme has such wonderful abbreviations, such as 1+ and -1+ as operators for increment and decrement. Of course, I can implement those easily in any Scheme dialect as follows:

Code: Select all

(define 1+ (lambda(x) (+ x 1)))
(define -1+ (lambda(x) (- x 1)))

or perhaps more familiar to some of you:

Code: Select all

(define (1+ x) (+ x 1))
(define (-1+ x) (- x 1))

Remember, that in Lisp like languages, such as Scheme, the operator is put in front of the operands, instead of between the operands, as most people are used to:

Code: Select all

(+ 1 2)

evaluates to 3, and

Code: Select all

(+ 1 2 3 4 5)

evaluates to 15.

I'm so looking forward to creating useful code for the Anime Studio community.

[jahnocli]

Go for it! And good luck with your studies!

[human]

Yeah, good luck indeed.

Your contributions will be missed...

[Rasheed]

Thanks for the encouragements. I've adjusted my forum avatar...

[Captain Jack]

You've just taken your first step into a larger world.

-- Obi Wan Kenobi

Seriously, way to go... the world needs more of us thinkers-in-binary.

[bupaje]

Good luck with your studies Rasheed. You'll get use to the smell of burning brain cells after the first few weeks -smells a little like Bacon- and then it is all downhill from there. Seriously though, have fun. Look forward to hearing how you do.

I have a worthless distance learning associates degree in computer programming, though I did do ok with the BASIC flavor languages for a while. Anything that smells like C gives me a brain spasm.

[ingie01]

Rasheed,
Great news for you, and for the rest of us.
Your dedication to the forum and your generosity means we all benefit!