Mail Archives: djgpp/2000/10/24/14:01:44
In article <39F52E56 DOT C516F9EF AT eton DOT powernet DOT co DOT uk>,
Richard Heathfield <binary AT eton DOT powernet DOT co DOT uk> wrote:
> ChuckEasttom wrote:
> >
> <snip tirade from a Mr D Steward>
> > >
> > >
> > One of the weaknesses of usenet is that it allows people to go off
on
> > tirades totally devoid of anything approaching civil behavior.
>
> Ohhhhh I dunno... I'm sure it's a useful safety valve for some people.
> :-)
Could be, and for some (yourself included) a simple request to tone
down the rhetoric is sufficient. BTW I do thank and congratulate you
for your willingness to change the tone of our various discussions.
>
> > Since
> > you have never seen a line of my code, you will forgive me for not
> > giving your opinion of my programming capabilities more weight.
>
> Well, I can see why you would not treat Mr Steward's opinion terribly
> seriously. Nevertheless, even though he is somewhat forthright, he
does
> have a point about Schildt, as has already been discussed not only by
us
> but by a million C programmers before us.
>
Welll I would say a million is a bit of an exaggeration. However Mr.
Stewards opinion seems to be (note I say 'seems to be') this: Schildts
books do have mistakes, ergo if you like schildt at all then you are an
incompetent programmer. I personally think that is a tremendous leap
of thinking with very little logical basis.
> > I have
> > never said that Schildt was a great author or that his books where
> > perfect.
>
> No, you haven't. Nevertheless, I think you may have failed to
understand
> the sheer levels of incompetence to which Mr Schildt's programs
strive.
> I gave you an example recently, I believe. It's by no means atypical.
To be frank I have never tried to run any of his sample code. I used
his books in my early days of learning C and C++ to quickly get the
concepts. Everyone has admitted that his writting style is very good.
I found, and still feel, that this writting style allowed him to
quickly and efficiently present programming concepts in a very clear
manner. Thats all, no more and no less.
>
> > I do feel that he does a good job of presenting concepts in a
> > very easily understood manner.
>
> Right. He does. Unfortunately, his explanations, though easily
> understood, are /flawed/. Let me find you an example - I shan't be
long,
> I promise you!...
It does not matter what example you find. I have not once said anything
one way or another about the sample code in his books. You are arguing
a point,I have not made.
>
<snip irrelevant example>
> > No more no less. If that opinion
> > upsets you to the degree that it seems to have, then I suggest you
> > might consider consulting a therapist... and I mean that in all
> > sincerity without any sarcasm at all.
>
> It doesn't bother me if you like Schildt, but (if you value your
> reputation) I think you'd be well-advised to steer clear of
recommending
> him to others in a newsgroup where technical accuracy is a concern, or
> you will attract many more mini-flames such as Mr D Steward's.
>
Frankly speaking I am seeing more and more people in this newsgroup who
seem to boost their own self esteem from frankly attacking other, in
which case I find it hard to really care what such people think of my
reputation. My reputation remains intact with those who have:
a. Actually worked with me
b. Employed me
c. Or met me in person.
If someone on the net does not like me or respect me I can hardly be
overly distraught about this.
> --
> Richard Heathfield
> "Usenet is a strange place." - Dennis M Ritchie, 29 July 1999.
> C FAQ: http://www.eskimo.com/~scs/C-faq/top.html
> K&R answers, C books, etc: http://users.powernet.co.uk/eton
>
--
http://www.geocities.com/~chuckeasttom/
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