Attacking the lore of early programming passion: It's just class privilege | Hacker News Reader

Attacking the lore of early programming passion: It's just class privilege

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10 pointsgrandalf12 comments

Bit of a bogus article. Dangerous, too, because it drags racism into the equation.

I am not originally from the US, so I'm not sure to what extent the assumptions made in the article (about class privilege, systemic racism, etc) apply to my situation, if at all.

In any case, my parents were not especially rich, and were not first in line to buy me a "home computer" when they came out in the 1980s. Nevertheless, I did get one when I was 12, a few years later than some of my friends. I have been hacking ever since.

There were also many kids in my class who were not interested in computers at all, and therefore didn't want (or get) one. I doubt that this was because they were "poorer" or "underprivileged", since they got other things that I wasn't interested in (designer clothing, expensive sneakers, etc).

You are seeing it at the wrong angle. The point of the article is that the privileged ones got their computers early just because there parents could afford it. You make it seem like everyone had a choice of getting or not getting one computer and most of the others chose not to get one. But in real world, not everyone's parents are rich enough (or aware enough) to get them a computer when they are 8.

I personally got my computer when I was 15, not because I didn't want it till I was 15 but because my parents could not afford it (and I got it even at that time because my sister took up a course in computer science in high school and my father got a promotion which increased his limited government salary). I had been interested in computers from the age of 13 (well that was when I had really got familiar with it, before that it was just voodoo to me), I tried to learn some programming in (gasp gasp) C, by reading books which I purchased from a crap dealer and stealing time on school computers by doing extra work for teachers. I wanted a computer disparately but could not get it. Why? Because getting a computer is indeed a class privilege even now (btw I am 19 right now so all this did not happen a terribly long time ago).

Try to think of people other than at school. Those people had the privilege but chose not to exercise it, but there are people (still) in the world who cannot afford a computer for their children even now.

>The point of the article is that the privileged ones got their computers early just because there parents could afford it.

And this point is wrong. The kids who got computers in the 80's had both interest and parents who could afford it.

Anyway, as someone else pointed out already, this is moot - today's freshman was 8 in 2000, not 1985.

You know, I generally am sympathetic to the article's point, but today? There are perfectly workable computers available for under $400. Compilers, both on the MS and linux side, are free. Internet connections at public libraries are free. Good books on learning to program are free or easily pirated.

When all you've got is a humorless, all encompassing ideology, everything looks like a nail.

Cheers,

Carson

You're talking about hackers, right?

Heh. No, but the statement does have broad applicability, doesn't it?

But not to you or me, of course.

Cheers,

Carson

We talked about this yesterday: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1558165

hah oops, must have missed it.

Does it matter now though? Today's 20 year old was born in 1990. When he was eight, everyone was able to afford a computer.

Accusing anyone whose good a programming of only have said skill because of class priviledge (a generalization that may be true in the aggregate but unfairly applied blindly to an individual) seems like a horrible way to combat the lack of women/minorites in the IT field which is driven in part by generalizations that may be true in the aggregate but are unfairly applied blindly to individuals.

Your response evidences that you did not read the article.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com