Thread: Encoder Code
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Unread 21-01-2008, 09:44
Steve_Alaniz Steve_Alaniz is offline
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Re: Encoder Code

Quote:
Originally Posted by John Hooper View Post
I've been programming for over 25 years, including some fairly heavy scientific programming and hobby programming on PIC microprocessors, and I have found this entire process of mentoring in FIRST to be quite confusing.

I think that those who make obnoxious remarks have probably forgotten what it was like to be completely new at this, on a rookie team, and working with new tools.

I agreed to mentor. Little did I know that I would be directed to read hundreds of pages of tedious documentation, when instead a simple example might seem to be in order.

Oh, I know: search the forum for "simple example" ... sorry, no hits.

I don't think the obnoxious remarks are made on purpose. Sometimes people are kidding and the written English language is tricky when it comes to expressing emotions. ( I used to be a writer.)
One basic problem is that brilliant design engineers, software engineers, electrical engineers do not always make good online teachers. A teacher is someone TRAINED to break down ideas for the expressed intent of explaining to someone who needs a very basic explanation with simple, concrete examples. (Teachers deserve a LOT more respect!) Half the stuff I read in here would be impossible to understand if I hadn't studied PIC programming and read a thick book on the chips that solved all my insomnia problems!
This stuff is darned confusing and C is a fairly hostile language when it comes to humans. It's highly unintuitive and I can hardly wait for the next fad language, or a decent C translator to come along and make some sense out of it all. (Oh I CAN do it... but it takes more time and effort than it should and goes against my philosophy that computers should make things easy for people and not the other way around.)
In the end, I can hardly disagree that there are a profound lack of SIMPLE examples and explanations of concepts. That's one reason mentors are important. If you understand it, then you can translate for the kids on the team in a way they can understand. Still I agree with you, it's all too cryptic and tedious. Mentoring s tough (and sometimes thankless) and I doubt we'll ever see someone get a Nobel prize out of their involvement with a FIRST team, but it's important if not rewarding.
And by the way, if no one else has said it, Thanks for being a mentor.

Best wishes

Steve