• Dear Python, Why Are You So Ugly?

    by Jess Johnson in Programming Languages on April 26, 2012

    Dear Python, something has been bothering me for a while. Its just that, well, ummm…you’re kind of ugly. Look, you are beautiful inside: Python is a beautiful language and the Python community is open and welcoming. But Python resources are ugly enough to affect usability and adoption. This is damaging to the community.

  • Ruby on Rails Hosting Reviews

    by Jess Johnson in Programming Languages on June 17, 2011

    Cloud platforms are extremely useful when launching a minimum viable product because most of the system administration is handled by the hosting provider, while reserving the option to scale up later if required. Some offer free starter plans to bootstrap applications without making an initial investment. Here is a look at the available options for Ruby on Rails hosting providers, including comments on which one is most appropriate for various types of projects.

  • Learning Clojure with Project Euler

    by Jess Johnson in Programming Languages on September 20, 2009

    This article is a quick introduction to Clojure from someone still learning the language. I work through a few Project Euler problems, refining solutions along the way. In the end I give some general impressions of the language, the install and setup process, and support for Clojure within different development tools. Long time readers of this blog will remember I also used Project Euler to learn Scala basics a while ago.

  • Programming Syntax Brain Teasers

    by Jess Johnson in Programming Languages on October 5, 2008

    This is a collection of 4 programming brain teasers in C and Java. Some require a sudden flash of insight or knowledge of good coding style to solve, others demand intimate knowledge of the compilation process. The problems range from easy to insanely tricky. The C brain teasers come from The C Puzzle Book and the Obfuscated C Contest. The Java problems are from the Java Puzzlers book. Answers to all problems are at the bottom of the page.

  • Learning Scala With Project Euler

    by Jess Johnson in Programming Languages on September 15, 2008

    This article is a quick journey through the mind of a Scala newbie while learning the language. I work through a few Project Euler problems, refining solutions along the way so they use more idiomatic Scala. In the end I give some general impressions of the language, the install and setup process, the Scala community, and support for Scala within different development tools.

  • The Essential Programming Language Toolbox

    by Jess Johnson in Programming Languages on June 22, 2008

    Everybody has a different idea of which languages are important. And the answer really depends on who you are and what you believe is important. I came to programming through a theoretical computer science route which initially gave me a shallow understanding of a wide breadth of topics. In this school of thought, languages are just a vehicle for learning about the big ideas in computer science. And to get at all of the ideas, you need to use a language that lends itself to the topic.