Comment by evo_9 | Hacker News Reader

Comment by evo_9 | Hacker News Reader

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Sounds like Jeff has a non-CS background; aka, he's one of these guys that has the capability to really understand this stuff at a deep, meaningful level, but sometimes (often?) runs into his own limits (note: this is not to say CS 'people' are incapable of this - but rather - this is a trait that is not automatic whether you are 'self-taught' or a CS grad).

The 'plunk' you are describing is his ability to just 'get it done' - a trait I think most tech founders greatly underestimate. It's an ability or mental strength that makes a person able to will the project over the goal-line. I'm amazed how hard it is to complete anything - whether it's a startup app I'm working on or a piece of music - finishing it 100% and getting it 'in the can' is no small feet. It's special gift, and one that I would highly recommend anyone searching for a founder look for in their partner(s).

I have to admit I like Jeff, from his articles and such he seems to have a pretty clear way of thinking through big tech issues, and while he may sometimes surprise me with a 'lack of knowledge', I just remind myself that we all have gaps in our knowledge and at the end of the day, he's done some incredible work, and this 'lack' hasn't hurt him much (maybe it caused him to take longer to get to where he is, but he still managed to get it done).

He seems pretty open about not knowing things, which I think is a really underrated trait.

I don't quite understand your first sentence. How can you learn anything new if you don't run into your own limits?

Ha! Good point... I was trying to get at this idea that some people are naturals and Jeff seems to be that type of person; for what he might lack in formal education - and hence may run into these 'limits' more than others might - he has other worthwhile traits that compensate or even compliment this perceived lack on his part.

For all we know it's his lack of knowledge that gives him an edge - he runs into something he doesn't get or hasn't been exposed too and dives in, eats it up because he needs to really know it. Compare that to a guy that takes a class on some esoteric aspect of coding, when he/she doesn't have any need to apply it, when they just care about getting a good grade - which person really has learned the material? Does the person that already learned it but didn't need it at the time have a really big advantage? They might work through the problem faster, so maybe that's the advantage - you save some time.

But I like the root of your point - one doesn't grow/learn without trying to hit their own limits and push past them. Good stuff man.

That makes sense.

Theres one big difference between real life and (undergrad?) CS classes: the discovery phase. In most classes, the solution is laid out for you or implied in some way. Algorithms classes generally just consist of following a spec outlined by the book/teacher.

But when you run across a problem in real life it doesn't tell you to use a specific algorithm to solve it. Because of this, finding the solution usually requires a deeper level of knowledge.

When I graduated, that was the scariest part for me. Sure, I knew a bunch of algorithms, but I didn't have much practice in discovering when to use them and applying them to problems.

Exactly - how to find answers to new problems is huge. That's probably the question that makes or breaks interviews I give to new programmers. If they can't tell me how they'll figure something out on there own, yeah not good. In fact, even just being honest and saying you'd not consider this and weren't sure would be fine too. But you'd be surprised how many people how no real answer or scramble something out that doesn't quite cover it.

The funny thing is - esp. depending on how old you are - it is incredible how much easier it is to learn/find answers now. Pre-google it was tough - I frequented Barns & Nobles often to see what new books had arrived, or just to go find an answer in a book I knew they had.

But I digress... google/stackoverflow/etc have all made our lives so much easier.

Baby steps are the way to start, and move forward, though don't think that's what you meant by "small feet". I think it's also important to have realistic, doable goals for "completion" that aren't "100%". This is because you'll learn more by getting feedback ASAP, and... nothing can ever be 100% complete, unless its scope is rigorously perscribed, as for a theorem.

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