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Comment by nessus42 | Hacker News Reader

Did you really not get that the OP is a parody? The point is that this is obviously NOT the way to hire writers. The implication then being that it is also not the way to hire programmers, even though, sadly, hiring programers is typically done just that way these days.

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No, I did not get it. I think this is because, as I said, I just recently started learning to program. I started in January, but I do not commit 100% of my time to it, as I have a full time job that deals with something completely different.

I know nothing about hiring developers or being a developer.

Also, for the record, I just read in Hitesh's blog's comment section that this is not about hiring writers.

Thanks, everyone, for not beating me up for it! :)

Here's a development tip:

Obviously, to dabble in programming you must learn the fundamentals-- the syntax and grammar. However, your ultimate goal is to envision a problem, device a system that solves the problem, and then gracefully describe that system using your chosen language. You can always look grammar and syntax up in the documentation.

I think you will see the parallels to your current occupation.

As a Technical Writer trying to weasel his way into more developmenty tasks, I find this advice insanely insightful. I spend a lot of time frustrated at my lack of development training, and maybe don't step back enough to clearly define the problem-solution before opening Vim.

Thank you. I will keep this in mind as I learn more about development.

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