534 passages, newest first · 89 ms
`5:14:15`
but how featureful as this editor is this? — It's quite featureful, but it's a GUI-driven editor in some regards. It was really early on with ways of recording macros and having sort of sophisticated syntax highlighting. And it did a bunch of firsts and it was just a really pleasant editing experience. I think…
`5:15:19`
I want to text editor. I want interact with characters directly. And Neovim allows me to do that in some ways that are even better than TextMate. And I love TextMate, but Vi as you know. Once you learn the commands and it sounds, I sometimes feel like Vi fans overplay how difficult it is to learn…
`5:16:20`
And I had three days of annoyance and already the next week I was like, this is sweet. I'm not going anywhere. But I also had a bit of a head start about 20 years ago in early 2000s. I tried Vim for like a summer and it didn't stick. I didn't for whatever…
`5:17:22`
Would TypeScript be the third then? — TypeScript wouldn't even be in this universe. I hate TypeScript as much as I like JavaScript. — So what you hate, oh man, I'm not smart enough to understand the math of that. Okay, before I ask about other programming languages, if you can encapsulate your hatred of TypeScript into…
`5:18:23`
I see the type gymnastics that you sometimes have to do and where a bunch of people give up and just do any instead, right? Like that they don't actually use the type system because it's just too frustrating to use. So I've ever only felt the frustration of TypeScript and the obfuscation of…
`5:19:24`
— There's something deeply enjoyable about a brilliant programmer such as yourself, DHH is talking shit. It's like one of my favorite things in life. What are the top three programming languages everyone should learn if you're talking to a beginner? — I would 100% start with Ruby. It is magic for beginners in terms of…
`5:20:26`
There's a book called "Learn to Program" by Pine that uses Ruby essentially to just teach basic programming principles that I've seen heavily recommended. So that's a great language. — [Lex] How quickly would you go to Rails? — It depends on what you wanna do. If you wanna build web applications, go to Rails right…
`5:21:26`
on a real program. — Yeah, yeah, for sure. — So I would start there. But then number two, I probably would be JavaScript. Because JavaScript just is the language you need to know if you wanna work with the web. And the web is the greatest application platform of all time if you're making business software, collaboration…
`5:22:28`
But at some point, you're gonna hit the limit and you should use something else. I'm not someone who prescribed just Ruby for everything. Just once you reach the level of abstraction that's involved with web applications, Ruby is superb. But if you're writing, for example, HTTP proxy, go, it's great for…
`5:23:29`
— They are always going to show up. It must be some kind of OCaml industrial complex or something like this. But they always say mention OCaml. — I love that there are people who love functional languages to that degree. Those people are not me. I don't care at all. Like I care about functional principles when…
`5:24:32`
It's actually not readable at all. — That's the problem I've had with Lisp. — OCaml is very intuitive, very readable. It's nice. — I really should pick up a language like that at some point. I've been programming long enough that it's a little embarrassing that I haven't actually done anything real…
`5:25:34`
I really wanted to become a games programmer. And then I saw what it took to write a collision detection engine. And I go like, yeah, that's not me at all. I'm never gonna be into vector matrix manipulation or any of that stuff. It's way too much math and I'm more of…
`5:26:37`
and for my own delight. I can get away with that because I'm working in a high level language like Ruby, working on collaboration software and to-do lists and all the other stuff. Again, if I was trying to apply my talents to writing 3D game engines, no, that's not the right mindset. That…
`5:27:37`
But there's a more... I don't know, I just don't wanna romanticize it, but it's more poetic, it's more literary. It's more feels like writing a good blog post than... — I actually wish that AI had a bit higher standards for writing. I find the fact that it accepts my sloppy…
`5:28:37`
You also have to solve a problem. You're not just communicating a solution. You have to actually figure out what are you trying to say, but even writing has that. Half the time when I start writing a blog post, I don't know exactly what arguments I'm gonna use. They develop as part of…
`5:29:38`
And that you should not discard those feelings in preference to over comp... or not even complicated, to analytics, to intellectualism. Very often when we look at the big decisions we've had to make, they've come from the gut where you cannot fully articulate like, why do I think this is the right thing? Well…
`5:30:39`
And that's hell of enjoyable way to work. And it's also in very often the correct way to work. Your gut knows a lot, like you can't articulate it, but it's spot on more times than not. — Yeah, having to make a plan can be a paralyzing thing. I've often, I mean…
`5:31:41`
you kind of have to just take the leap and then just figure out as you go. — My favorite essay in "Rework" is the last one, and it's entitled, Inspiration is Perishable. And I think that captures a lot of it, that if you take the time to do a detailed plan, you may very well…
`5:32:42`
If you just put it back on the shelf and say like, well, I gotta be diligent about this. I gotta line up a plan. You may run out and then there's no steam to keep going. — I have to ask about open source. What does it take to run a successful open source project? You…
`5:33:44`
is to treat it as a business, as though your users are customers, as though they have claims of legitimacy on your time and your attention and your direction. Because I faced this almost immediately with Ruby on Rails. As soon as it was released, there were a million peoples who had all sorts of opinions about…