On English and programming.
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I agree. :thumbsup:
David1987 wrote:
If you don't know English, you can bag my groceries.
However, I don't agree with this statement...maybe you were trying to be funny.
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I always heard that if you speak three languages, you're trilingual. If you speak two languages, you're bilingual. And if you speak only one language, you're American.
Psychosis at 10 Film at 11
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There was an article linked to in the CP news that said that you don't have to know English to be a good programmer. I'm Dutch, and I know from experience that that can not be true. Sure, you can program without knowing English (English keyword? you don't have to know what they mean anyway, you just have to know what they do), but you can not learn to program without knowing English. Nearly all literature is in English. The rest is usually badly translated - from English. Discussion forums are generally in English. Usenet is in English - except for the few localized NG's (which aren't used anyway). Wikipedia is in English - they claim not to be, but the best article is almost always the English one (except for very national topics). And if that wasn't enough, if you're getting your Master's degree, the classes are in English. Also, every job description I've ever seen (for jobs in the Netherlands), good English communication skills are required. If you don't know English, you can bag my groceries.
All this means is that English speakers have had to do most of the heavy-lifting with regard to writing and teaching in this arena. Worse, non-Angloglots have allowed it to happen this way. This leaves only two choices -- or both: (1) Learn English well, and/or (2) Write a great software development book in Dutch.
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There was an article linked to in the CP news that said that you don't have to know English to be a good programmer. I'm Dutch, and I know from experience that that can not be true. Sure, you can program without knowing English (English keyword? you don't have to know what they mean anyway, you just have to know what they do), but you can not learn to program without knowing English. Nearly all literature is in English. The rest is usually badly translated - from English. Discussion forums are generally in English. Usenet is in English - except for the few localized NG's (which aren't used anyway). Wikipedia is in English - they claim not to be, but the best article is almost always the English one (except for very national topics). And if that wasn't enough, if you're getting your Master's degree, the classes are in English. Also, every job description I've ever seen (for jobs in the Netherlands), good English communication skills are required. If you don't know English, you can bag my groceries.
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There was an article linked to in the CP news that said that you don't have to know English to be a good programmer. I'm Dutch, and I know from experience that that can not be true. Sure, you can program without knowing English (English keyword? you don't have to know what they mean anyway, you just have to know what they do), but you can not learn to program without knowing English. Nearly all literature is in English. The rest is usually badly translated - from English. Discussion forums are generally in English. Usenet is in English - except for the few localized NG's (which aren't used anyway). Wikipedia is in English - they claim not to be, but the best article is almost always the English one (except for very national topics). And if that wasn't enough, if you're getting your Master's degree, the classes are in English. Also, every job description I've ever seen (for jobs in the Netherlands), good English communication skills are required. If you don't know English, you can bag my groceries.
A couple of centuries ago Latin was the language of choice for science, now it has become English. I'm quite happy with that, Latin seems so much harder to learn... Here in Belgium we have to know (at least) 3 languages: Dutch, English and French. So I think you're lucky in Holland ;-)
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A couple of centuries ago Latin was the language of choice for science, now it has become English. I'm quite happy with that, Latin seems so much harder to learn... Here in Belgium we have to know (at least) 3 languages: Dutch, English and French. So I think you're lucky in Holland ;-)
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Actually, I had to learn English, German, French and Latin :( But after the second year I chose ancient Greek instead of Latin. Back in the old days you could drop German and/or French, but now you can't.
I had to learn German too, I choose it as my 3rd language (and then English as the 4th). But I was lucky with the Latin and the Greek ;-) I must say that I don't use German anymore, so it's a but rusty now. Tschüss, Gaston
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No no - for phone support it's not a requirement that you don't know English - it's a requirement that you don't know computers (or mobile phones or broadband or whatever) :doh:
Beidh ceol, caint agus craic againn - Seán Bán Breathnach
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Don't tell my folks I'm a computer programmer - They think I'm a piano player in a cat house...
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Da mihi sis crustum Etruscum cum omnibus in eo!
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Everybody is ignorant, only on different subjects - Will Rogers, 1924surely you mean for phone support it IS a requirement that you do NOT know English Then it doesn't matter what else you know or don't know, or even if you know some unknown unknowns.
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I think I read somewhere that there are more English speakers in China than there is England. :~
Andrew Leeder wrote:
I think I read somewhere that there are more English speakers in China than there is England.
But I don't think its true, I think its less than 20m. There are more English speakers in India ~120m, and Nigeria ~80m, than in the UK ~58m According to no less an authority than the immediate past prime minister of UK&NI, China is planning to have all people between under 25 speaking English by 2025.
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Don't worry, another 10 years and everybody would be speaking Chinese (Mandarin /Cantonese bleh) :rolleyes:
I are n00b.
SinghUlarity... wrote:
Don't worry, another 10 years and everybody would be speaking Chinese (Mandarin /Cantonese bleh
Nuh, the Politburo knows the rest of the planet ain't going to learn Mandarin or Cantonese. So they've got everyone over there learning English, Spanish etc That way they can take over while we're asleep :laugh:
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Don't worry, another 10 years and everybody would be speaking Chinese (Mandarin /Cantonese bleh) :rolleyes:
I are n00b.
When that time comes, poor kids at school... This will be failing many of them
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what underdevelopped country are you? I'm in one of the worse ones I we don't have that anymore... :laugh:
If there is in portugal, you gotta have it everywhere... :laugh: Sorry for the joke, but there is a little thing on Brazilian jokes challenging Portuguese intelligence and I beleive the other way around is also true.
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There was an article linked to in the CP news that said that you don't have to know English to be a good programmer. I'm Dutch, and I know from experience that that can not be true. Sure, you can program without knowing English (English keyword? you don't have to know what they mean anyway, you just have to know what they do), but you can not learn to program without knowing English. Nearly all literature is in English. The rest is usually badly translated - from English. Discussion forums are generally in English. Usenet is in English - except for the few localized NG's (which aren't used anyway). Wikipedia is in English - they claim not to be, but the best article is almost always the English one (except for very national topics). And if that wasn't enough, if you're getting your Master's degree, the classes are in English. Also, every job description I've ever seen (for jobs in the Netherlands), good English communication skills are required. If you don't know English, you can bag my groceries.
Yeah, but you need to know Japanese to watch fresh anime -- which is why I'm learning Japanese. Regardless, I always wondered about this topic. I mean, can I program in Japan if I know Engrish? Do they localize the keywords or is an int and int everywhere in the whole wide world? My Japanese language exchange partner did some programming in C# and couldn't get the program to work. He sent it to me and I fixed it. Is this because I know English and he doesn't or is it because he's not a very good C# programmer (that doesn't really mean I am either, though).
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Actually, I had to learn English, German, French and Latin :( But after the second year I chose ancient Greek instead of Latin. Back in the old days you could drop German and/or French, but now you can't.
Modern Greek or Classical Greek? I took two years of Classical Greek while an undergraduate. Man, I loved tha class. It was my easiest class too. Unfortunately, I never learned a language I could use to communicate with others in the world. I learned a heck of a lot about grammar though. Okay, the real problem in the USA with languages is that we're too big? Who are you going to practice with? Many of our states are bigger than whole countries in Europe, Asia, etc. Okay... with all the Mexican immigrants, Spanish is quickly becoming a "second" language here, but it's not necessary nor is it all that prevalent throughout the country.
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Modern Greek or Classical Greek? I took two years of Classical Greek while an undergraduate. Man, I loved tha class. It was my easiest class too. Unfortunately, I never learned a language I could use to communicate with others in the world. I learned a heck of a lot about grammar though. Okay, the real problem in the USA with languages is that we're too big? Who are you going to practice with? Many of our states are bigger than whole countries in Europe, Asia, etc. Okay... with all the Mexican immigrants, Spanish is quickly becoming a "second" language here, but it's not necessary nor is it all that prevalent throughout the country.
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There was an article linked to in the CP news that said that you don't have to know English to be a good programmer. I'm Dutch, and I know from experience that that can not be true. Sure, you can program without knowing English (English keyword? you don't have to know what they mean anyway, you just have to know what they do), but you can not learn to program without knowing English. Nearly all literature is in English. The rest is usually badly translated - from English. Discussion forums are generally in English. Usenet is in English - except for the few localized NG's (which aren't used anyway). Wikipedia is in English - they claim not to be, but the best article is almost always the English one (except for very national topics). And if that wasn't enough, if you're getting your Master's degree, the classes are in English. Also, every job description I've ever seen (for jobs in the Netherlands), good English communication skills are required. If you don't know English, you can bag my groceries.
It related the funny comment in my mind as something like: "If you call your self programmer and don't knew any English you will be bagging my groceries sooner or later." or "Go find another profession if you can't speak English." and I would agree on it.
I like being sober. It gives some kind of quality to life that I can't really put my finger on... it is like running life from console way less colors but so much more control.
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There was an article linked to in the CP news that said that you don't have to know English to be a good programmer. I'm Dutch, and I know from experience that that can not be true. Sure, you can program without knowing English (English keyword? you don't have to know what they mean anyway, you just have to know what they do), but you can not learn to program without knowing English. Nearly all literature is in English. The rest is usually badly translated - from English. Discussion forums are generally in English. Usenet is in English - except for the few localized NG's (which aren't used anyway). Wikipedia is in English - they claim not to be, but the best article is almost always the English one (except for very national topics). And if that wasn't enough, if you're getting your Master's degree, the classes are in English. Also, every job description I've ever seen (for jobs in the Netherlands), good English communication skills are required. If you don't know English, you can bag my groceries.
People should learn English, and people who only know English should learn at least one other language.
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digital man wrote:
(Cos I'm blatted if I can be asked to learn a forine langwidge).
Thus says the man with a Latin quip in his autosig ...
I was joking (even though some humorless wanker has downvoted me) :-)
"If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." Red Adair. nils illegitimus carborundum me, me, me
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Yeah, but don't worry. In compensation you still have to deal with all the crap that comes with trying to localize your application: time formats, currencies ... :((
giuchici