Comments on: U.S. slips lower in coding contest

Chinese students win an international programming competition, while U.S. schools' performance hits a new low.

[MyLord]

But how did we do in the farming competition?

It has more of a future than IT.

[Sboston]

Weeds

I have a great crop of weeds. (Not the wacky type)

[Flytrap]

... And when the farm subsidies go

...the world is likely to turn to the Chinese once again. We all know that the WTO is driving the farm subsidies out and US farmers will not be able to compete against millions of Chinese farmers working for next to nothing flooding the open market.

When the subsidies go globalisation will come back to haunt the US. The Globalisation doctrine assumed that the western economies would retain a lock on the hi tech and research sector, leaving the low end to the third world. This has turned out not to be true - we have all learned that you cannot keep knowledge in a can and only open the can slightly when you need something from inside. Knowledge wants to be free and now everybody has it... but not everybody has the high cost of production of the US... not a good position to be in.

[MyLord]

But how did we do in the farming competition?

It has more of a future than IT.

[Sboston]

Weeds

I have a great crop of weeds. (Not the wacky type)

[Flytrap]

... And when the farm subsidies go

...the world is likely to turn to the Chinese once again. We all know that the WTO is driving the farm subsidies out and US farmers will not be able to compete against millions of Chinese farmers working for next to nothing flooding the open market.

When the subsidies go globalisation will come back to haunt the US. The Globalisation doctrine assumed that the western economies would retain a lock on the hi tech and research sector, leaving the low end to the third world. This has turned out not to be true - we have all learned that you cannot keep knowledge in a can and only open the can slightly when you need something from inside. Knowledge wants to be free and now everybody has it... but not everybody has the high cost of production of the US... not a good position to be in.

Why be alarmed... Who now leads in the Space Race!

The fact that Drake has expressed the thoughts that "The Chinese government doesn't like the existence of Taiwan" should not concern one very much in as much as it was reported that the "U.S. slips lower in coding contest". I say this for the following reasons:- (1). The Chinese have not the experience and the capabilities of a combined United States of America and Russia in space exploration and other activities. (2). History should remind us that "not" only citizens of the United States of America perished in the September 11th, 2001 attack on the US mainland and the fact that NATO is an ever expanding organization as well as the fact that the US is very much a part of the Organization of American States... why bother about being "nuked"... China is not the World. During WW2, the Germans know very well the results of Russians with America's help moving back the means of production (food - what will they live on) and distribution from the front lines. This time around (God forbid) it may very well be Space Defense and other Technologies. US Nationals do not have to depend on programming alone!

Why be alarmed... Who now leads in the Space Race!

The fact that Drake has expressed the thoughts that "The Chinese government doesn't like the existence of Taiwan" should not concern one very much in as much as it was reported that the "U.S. slips lower in coding contest". I say this for the following reasons:- (1). The Chinese have not the experience and the capabilities of a combined United States of America and Russia in space exploration and other activities. (2). History should remind us that "not" only citizens of the United States of America perished in the September 11th, 2001 attack on the US mainland and the fact that NATO is an ever expanding organization as well as the fact that the US is very much a part of the Organization of American States... why bother about being "nuked"... China is not the World. During WW2, the Germans know very well the results of Russians with America's help moving back the means of production (food - what will they live on) and distribution from the front lines. This time around (God forbid) it may very well be Space Defense and other Technologies. US Nationals do not have to depend on programming alone!

[Stomfi]

Dominant US OS dumbing down abilities

The countries that are excelling are the ones who haven't yet standardised on the the dominant US desktop system, which is designed for the dumb user, not the clever one.
Luckily for them, they can't afford Windows and instead are forced to use something cheap, like OSS, which is designed by clever programmers for clever people.
The US should take serious note of these figures, instead of saying, "who cares", and realise that computing is in its infancy as far as its possible development, even though the MS desktop system seems to have nearly reached the end of its possibilities.
Wake up America and start programming for a different future. One with all talking, all seeing, all reading computers, and with sophisticated work oriented robots.

[Stomfi]

Dominant US OS dumbing down abilities

The countries that are excelling are the ones who haven't yet standardised on the the dominant US desktop system, which is designed for the dumb user, not the clever one.
Luckily for them, they can't afford Windows and instead are forced to use something cheap, like OSS, which is designed by clever programmers for clever people.
The US should take serious note of these figures, instead of saying, "who cares", and realise that computing is in its infancy as far as its possible development, even though the MS desktop system seems to have nearly reached the end of its possibilities.
Wake up America and start programming for a different future. One with all talking, all seeing, all reading computers, and with sophisticated work oriented robots.

Think outside the box

The U.S. computer science field had a boom for 20 years preceding the year 2000. The game is changing now. As always, creative and energetic people with new ideas will have their moment of glory in the race for power, but those ?champions? won?t necessarily be computer scientist. The next champions may fulfil their visions by hiring computer scientists from the least expensive global source. I think those champions will be thinking globally, and not in terms such as ?the U.S. versus China or Eastern Europe.? The ?next big thing? is like a tsnumami. It catches the masses by surprise.

Think outside the box

The U.S. computer science field had a boom for 20 years preceding the year 2000. The game is changing now. As always, creative and energetic people with new ideas will have their moment of glory in the race for power, but those ?champions? won?t necessarily be computer scientist. The next champions may fulfil their visions by hiring computer scientists from the least expensive global source. I think those champions will be thinking globally, and not in terms such as ?the U.S. versus China or Eastern Europe.? The ?next big thing? is like a tsnumami. It catches the masses by surprise.

[culture_of_one]

Too many programmers...

sit on their behinds and wait to be told what to do. Then they complain about their pay. Whatever happened to "seizing the initiative" and "creating real value"?

There's a big difference between "someone who knows the alphabet" and a "novelist". Being able to write code is not enough--anyone can write "volume". You have to "push" the envelope, and "work" at becoming the best!

If your present employer doesn't see the added value in your work--just move on. Get a job with a "better" firm...or, better yet, start your own! ;)

Sincerely, JDM

[culture_of_one]

Too many programmers...

sit on their behinds and wait to be told what to do. Then they complain about their pay. Whatever happened to "seizing the initiative" and "creating real value"?

There's a big difference between "someone who knows the alphabet" and a "novelist". Being able to write code is not enough--anyone can write "volume". You have to "push" the envelope, and "work" at becoming the best!

If your present employer doesn't see the added value in your work--just move on. Get a job with a "better" firm...or, better yet, start your own! ;)

Sincerely, JDM

[culture_of_one]

And BTW...

You've got at least ten well-trained IT people in here complaining about being "unemployed" or "underemployed". The pay sucks, they get no respect...and blah, blah, blah.

Now, I want you all to know that I usually get paid good money for the consulting work I do--so listen carefully to this major hint:

There's "a bunch of programmers" who are "unsatisfied with their current situations"...all "connected to the web" and talking to each other...and they should probably...(???)

Major Hint 2.0 - If I were you guys, I'd probably be exchanging email addresses and/or phone numbers right about now.

Major Hint 2.1 (Beta) - The virtual company exists now. The firms I consult for have workers working together around the globe "in real time". (Think Skype, file sharing, high-speed...it will come to you.)

So, you guys should probably...?

Well, Duh! :p And I sincerely hope that everything works out well for you! ;)

Sincerely, JDM

(*For those of you who still have no clue as to what I'm suggesting--get an MBA and join any large corporation. Chances are you'll fit right in!) :p

[culture_of_one]

And BTW...

You've got at least ten well-trained IT people in here complaining about being "unemployed" or "underemployed". The pay sucks, they get no respect...and blah, blah, blah.

Now, I want you all to know that I usually get paid good money for the consulting work I do--so listen carefully to this major hint:

There's "a bunch of programmers" who are "unsatisfied with their current situations"...all "connected to the web" and talking to each other...and they should probably...(???)

Major Hint 2.0 - If I were you guys, I'd probably be exchanging email addresses and/or phone numbers right about now.

Major Hint 2.1 (Beta) - The virtual company exists now. The firms I consult for have workers working together around the globe "in real time". (Think Skype, file sharing, high-speed...it will come to you.)

So, you guys should probably...?

Well, Duh! :p And I sincerely hope that everything works out well for you! ;)

Sincerely, JDM

(*For those of you who still have no clue as to what I'm suggesting--get an MBA and join any large corporation. Chances are you'll fit right in!) :p

Good for dummies, Good for the "so-called" clever ones too!

It's about the economics "so-called" clever ones! It will appear to me that some folks disregard history or conveniently appear to suffer from bouts of amnesia when it comes to the questions with regards to originality. Even if it took the descendants of the founding fathers and others of the United States 150 years to come up with methods of computing for the dumb user (and not a cheap one the clever ones) then why is it that the concern of the folks at Redmond is not the "cheap" ones designed by clever programmers for clever people (which apparently took 5000 years after donations from the "UNIX" development activities) but the illegal "copying" of the ones that were designed for the dumb user. "Native Source-Codes" will always be "Native Source-Codes" and "clones" will always be "clones".

If "so-called" clever programmers were so clever how come from an international evaluation stand-point the Anglo-French "Concorde" project has not yet been determined to be a commercially viable one. What kind of economic modelling was applied in this case. Why not ask the next "American Idol" for some business and "career" tips and after the clever programmers are done developing "interoperable" XML codes... business users all over the world would start downloading over the "Covad" types of communication networks for free while they listen to the songs by dumb "American Idols" and not wanting to be caught up with some piece of computer gadget that can't deliver the "functionalities" that they need to get the job at hand done as quickly as possible (Watch out for Realtime "Reporting" Threat from Redmond). End users all over the world want and will pay for (or obtain illegally in preference)gadgets that best serve their needs.

[culture_of_one]

Hang on...

while I reach for my copy of "Twisted Reasoning and Fallacious Logic for Dummies". :p

[culture_of_one]

I'll assume...

that you were attempting to respond to "Dominant US OS dumbing down abilities" by Tom Russell. That particular posting rated a DNR in my book. The old "counter-intuitive-software-makes-people-smarter" theme is fully covered in "Twisted Reasoning and Fallacious Logic for Dummies - Vol. 2"

Good for dummies, Good for the "so-called" clever ones too!

It's about the economics "so-called" clever ones! It will appear to me that some folks disregard history or conveniently appear to suffer from bouts of amnesia when it comes to the questions with regards to originality. Even if it took the descendants of the founding fathers and others of the United States 150 years to come up with methods of computing for the dumb user (and not a cheap one the clever ones) then why is it that the concern of the folks at Redmond is not the "cheap" ones designed by clever programmers for clever people (which apparently took 5000 years after donations from the "UNIX" development activities) but the illegal "copying" of the ones that were designed for the dumb user. "Native Source-Codes" will always be "Native Source-Codes" and "clones" will always be "clones".

If "so-called" clever programmers were so clever how come from an international evaluation stand-point the Anglo-French "Concorde" project has not yet been determined to be a commercially viable one. What kind of economic modelling was applied in this case. Why not ask the next "American Idol" for some business and "career" tips and after the clever programmers are done developing "interoperable" XML codes... business users all over the world would start downloading over the "Covad" types of communication networks for free while they listen to the songs by dumb "American Idols" and not wanting to be caught up with some piece of computer gadget that can't deliver the "functionalities" that they need to get the job at hand done as quickly as possible (Watch out for Realtime "Reporting" Threat from Redmond). End users all over the world want and will pay for (or obtain illegally in preference)gadgets that best serve their needs.

[culture_of_one]

Hang on...

while I reach for my copy of "Twisted Reasoning and Fallacious Logic for Dummies". :p

[culture_of_one]

I'll assume...

that you were attempting to respond to "Dominant US OS dumbing down abilities" by Tom Russell. That particular posting rated a DNR in my book. The old "counter-intuitive-software-makes-people-smarter" theme is fully covered in "Twisted Reasoning and Fallacious Logic for Dummies - Vol. 2"

We're so smart "were stupid"!

I hate to say it but, when the leaders of the "wealthiest and most technologically advance" nation on the planet can't figure out how we got so wealth and technolgy, then we're all doomed. They still we will lead the world by putting "WallMarts" in every neighborhood in the world, give the hungry programmer an $8 and hour job and lay claim that we're putting everyone back to work. We'll I guess $8 an hour is better than nothing. Guess I'll just file bankrupcy move out of my home and move in with my sisters family. Oh that's right I can no longer claim bankrupcy, so they garnish 20 cents on the dollar until it's paid. Man, I wish I was a politician, so that I can make enough money, live the american dream, and not have to think about paying for daycare, middleschools, high schools, college, a house, healthcare, insurance, taxes, and retirement and all those other issues average people deal with unsuccessfully. Try to do all that on $8.00 an hour and see if you kid can compete in an Acedemic Competition. The more likely competition he/she will be competing in will be the "wanna be" competion. They "wann be" somewhere else, they "wanna be" someone else, they "wanna be" anywhere else but here.

We're so smart "were stupid"!

I hate to say it but, when the leaders of the "wealthiest and most technologically advance" nation on the planet can't figure out how we got so wealth and technolgy, then we're all doomed. They still we will lead the world by putting "WallMarts" in every neighborhood in the world, give the hungry programmer an $8 and hour job and lay claim that we're putting everyone back to work. We'll I guess $8 an hour is better than nothing. Guess I'll just file bankrupcy move out of my home and move in with my sisters family. Oh that's right I can no longer claim bankrupcy, so they garnish 20 cents on the dollar until it's paid. Man, I wish I was a politician, so that I can make enough money, live the american dream, and not have to think about paying for daycare, middleschools, high schools, college, a house, healthcare, insurance, taxes, and retirement and all those other issues average people deal with unsuccessfully. Try to do all that on $8.00 an hour and see if you kid can compete in an Acedemic Competition. The more likely competition he/she will be competing in will be the "wanna be" competion. They "wann be" somewhere else, they "wanna be" someone else, they "wanna be" anywhere else but here.

[culture_of_one]

Where is it...

written in stone that you have to be an "employee"?

When I was 23 years old, I was blowing the doors off any kind of record my employer at that time had on the books. Youngest "assistant-operations director ever", and blah, blah, blah. I worked at least 60 hours a week, and frequently ended up sleeping on my desk...and for what? Was I well compensated? Well, relatively, yeah--but not to the extent that I produced value for the firm. Not even close, actually. (Near as I can tell, 300% more effort generated about 20% more pay.)

Then, during one of my employer's "advanced-management training" seminars (where they teach you to do unto others as the firm has done unto you), I was introduced to something they called, "the five-to-one rule"...which basically stated that "we never pay an employee more than a fifth of what he generates for the company". (I later learned that the average range for most companies is between 1/3 and 1/5 of value generated.) That sure opened my eyes!

So, if you're making $8.00/hour as an employee, you're actually generating between $24 and $40 per hour in value. I don't know about you guys, but my first thought was, "How can I get the five?" :p

Don't be an "employee" - that's not the "smart" thing to do!! YOU can start your own thing, and NO it isn't as hard as some people make it out to be.

Sincerely, JDM

(*Mind you, I don't blame my former employer at all. Business is just business. I do, however, reserve the right to "vote with my feet". And, since I didn't feel fairly compensated, even by their five-to-one rule, I decided to leave and start my own thing. It was tough in the beginning, but I never looked back...and now I'm quite happy with my compensation.)

[culture_of_one]

Where is it...

written in stone that you have to be an "employee"?

When I was 23 years old, I was blowing the doors off any kind of record my employer at that time had on the books. Youngest "assistant-operations director ever", and blah, blah, blah. I worked at least 60 hours a week, and frequently ended up sleeping on my desk...and for what? Was I well compensated? Well, relatively, yeah--but not to the extent that I produced value for the firm. Not even close, actually. (Near as I can tell, 300% more effort generated about 20% more pay.)

Then, during one of my employer's "advanced-management training" seminars (where they teach you to do unto others as the firm has done unto you), I was introduced to something they called, "the five-to-one rule"...which basically stated that "we never pay an employee more than a fifth of what he generates for the company". (I later learned that the average range for most companies is between 1/3 and 1/5 of value generated.) That sure opened my eyes!

So, if you're making $8.00/hour as an employee, you're actually generating between $24 and $40 per hour in value. I don't know about you guys, but my first thought was, "How can I get the five?" :p

Don't be an "employee" - that's not the "smart" thing to do!! YOU can start your own thing, and NO it isn't as hard as some people make it out to be.

Sincerely, JDM

(*Mind you, I don't blame my former employer at all. Business is just business. I do, however, reserve the right to "vote with my feet". And, since I didn't feel fairly compensated, even by their five-to-one rule, I decided to leave and start my own thing. It was tough in the beginning, but I never looked back...and now I'm quite happy with my compensation.)

I see 5 US schools int he top 40...

And another 17 in homerable mentions. Does any other nation have that many?

I see 5 US schools int he top 40...

And another 17 in homerable mentions. Does any other nation have that many?