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My point is reading does not provide substantial value, it provides barely any because you have to net out the opportunity cost of time spent reading. The gains are realised when you think and do something with the information consumed.

Therefore reading and watching are not the key to success.

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Perhaps we're considering reading with different perspectives. Reading a novel? Yeah sure. Reading documentation just to read it? Sure.

But it's essentially impossible to learn without information about a subject.

How do you suppose someone learn programming without reading documentation? Without reading code examples? This is active reading compared to passive reading, such as reading a novel.

Let's take two hypothetical people:

One reads all of the C++ spec from cover to cover. Remembers every single word of it, doesn't write a line of code.

One just starts fumbling around, writing code, reading just enough docs to get where they need to go.

Which one is the better programmer?

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