Dependence on Programming Experts

[Mark Smith]

On 6 Jul 2006, at 08:31, GregSmith wrote:
> I'm not asking for a tool that does everything for me.  I'm asking  
> for a
> computer language that lets me translate my organized thoughts and
> imagination into useful bits that, when assembled together, form  
> working
> components of a total working system.


Greg, what you describe is what pretty much every modern general- 
purpose programming language can claim to offer.

The ideas you have sound non-trivial to me, and it's going to take a  
serious and deep commitment from you to bring them into reality,  
whatever tools you choose.

An excerpt from  http://www.norvig.com/21-days.html

> Researchers (Hayes, Bloom) have shown it takes about ten years to  
> develop expertise in any of a wide variety of areas, including  
> chess playing, music composition, painting, piano playing,  
> swimming, tennis, and research in neuropsychology and topology.  
> There appear to be no real shortcuts: even Mozart, who was a  
> musical prodigy at age 4, took 13 more years before he began to  
> produce world-class music.


Now I suspect that most people can do productive work in Revolution  
after a shorter period than ten years, but even with the best  
learning materials ever, there is inherently so much to assimilate,  
that it's not going to happen in days. What I think you have in mind  
would be quite major undertakings for even a very experienced developer.

As a good way in to it all, I'll also recommend Dans book 'Software  
at the speed of thought'.

Best,

Mark