There were a lot of memorable parts in the sections of the book. I really liked Dave’s story about him slowly finding his thirst for learning. I especially liked part where the book described his pile of certifications and accomplishments slowly fading over time and slowly gets replaced by new books and tutorials. I liked that bit of imagery. However, the story that stuck with me the most was Dave’s story in Chapter 1. I think that story was the most relatable to me because I can understand how he felt when he talked about learning Java and wanted to give up because everything seemed difficult. I started programming in high school and the first language I picked up was C++. At the time, I found it very difficult, and I felt like I wasn’t very good at programming and there were a lot of times when I wanted to give up while I was in the class. It got to the point where I did not even consider picking up another programming language until I got to college. I can also relate to his feelings of not having built anything meaningful with his programming because that is how I feel sometimes about my programming. I think what I like best about this story is the fact it is about a person who was not all that great at programming but kept at it until he got better (even though it was at different points in his life). I find this aspect of the story to be endearing.
I think the reading has changed my opinion about the field of software development a lot because usually when I ask some of my other classmates in the field, a lot of them reply that it was something that they wanted to get into, or they are in the field because it is a lucrative field. The fact the reading tells us to stop and think about how to better our skills rather than how to advance our career really surprised me. It was not what I was expecting heading into the reading. Overall, I really enjoyed this week’s reading and I look forward to reading the rest.
Just a Guy Passing By 