Unofficial What are you Reading Thread?

[Thurnez Isa]

THEM: adventures with extremists

Jon Ronson

[Jasper]

Dracula, by Bram Stoker

[Mangrove]

Just finished: The White Brother by Michael Juste

Arrived in the mail this afternoon: What you should know about the Golden Dawn (Regardie) and Rudolf Steiner by Gary Lachman.

[Jasper]

I just checked out a copy of Java Demystified, so I at least feel like I have a grasp of what java programmers are talking about.

[Cainad (dec.)]

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

Any help in identifying and describing bollocks in this book would be greatly appreciated. My friend who practically worships this book needs mindfucking.

[Doktor Loki]

Tucker Max, "I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell."

One of  the funniest books I've ever read.

[Triple Zero]

I just checked out a copy of Java Demystified, so I at least feel like I have a grasp of what java programmers are talking about.

if i can give you a tip, i'm assuming that you're not really familiar with computer programming yet? the tip is, learn Python instead of Java

when you start learning to program, the most important bit is to develop and practice the "coders mindset", which is just a certain way of looking at problems, so that you can easily transcribe them into computer code. it is probably best compared with writing down a cooking recipe, only in much, much smaller steps because computers are generally more dumb than cooks.

once you got that down, the language you're writing in kind of becomes irrelevant. it's easy enough to pick up a new computer language, they're more like dialects of eachother anyway, and also when compared to natural languages, have a ridiculously small vocabulary to learn (about 50-100 keywords for your average computer language).
the selection criterium for using Java instead of Python or PHP or whatever, should optimally be made as a "right tool for the right job" choice, not because "everybody is talking about java".

the reason why i'm suggesting Python is because it is easy to learn and extremely powerful. i learned to program in BASIC myself, which is also very easy, but not extremely powerful, and to be honest, kind of outdated in current times.
another thing is that it's a reasonably new programming language (1991), and in the case of programming languages, newer usually means better, because it allows for more elegant, easy, understandable and clean programming.

on the other hand, Java is fine too. it's not very hard, and also extremely powerful, and a good general all-purpose solid language (which explains its popularity). the only problem, which can be especially annoying if you're just starting out, in Python your program can say print "hello world" and that's one line, and it's a complete program. you can start coding right away in Java, you first need a class definition, a main module, and 10-15 lines of code later, you're ready to say System.out.println("hello world").

[Jasper]

Ok, I'm reading

Elixir of Life, by Balzac

The Public orations of Demosthenes

Grimm's Fairy Tales

The Prince, Macchiavelli

The Writings Of Thomas Paine

The oddessey

The Iliad

The Sun Tsu

Dracula, Bram Stoker

Tractacus Logico

and a lot of other ones.

[Cain]

Reading Trickster Makes This World for the MLA course.

Still reading The Tragedy Of Great Power Politics by Mearsheimer.

Am about to finish Dying to Kill by Mia Bloom.

And I'll be starting Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army by Jeremy Scahill very soon.

[Jasper]

I just checked out a copy of Java Demystified, so I at least feel like I have a grasp of what java programmers are talking about.

if i can give you a tip, i'm assuming that you're not really familiar with computer programming yet? the tip is, learn Python instead of Java

when you start learning to program, the most important bit is to develop and practice the "coders mindset", which is just a certain way of looking at problems, so that you can easily transcribe them into computer code. it is probably best compared with writing down a cooking recipe, only in much, much smaller steps because computers are generally more dumb than cooks.

once you got that down, the language you're writing in kind of becomes irrelevant. it's easy enough to pick up a new computer language, they're more like dialects of eachother anyway, and also when compared to natural languages, have a ridiculously small vocabulary to learn (about 50-100 keywords for your average computer language).
the selection criterium for using Java instead of Python or PHP or whatever, should optimally be made as a "right tool for the right job" choice, not because "everybody is talking about java".

the reason why i'm suggesting Python is because it is easy to learn and extremely powerful. i learned to program in BASIC myself, which is also very easy, but not extremely powerful, and to be honest, kind of outdated in current times.
another thing is that it's a reasonably new programming language (1991), and in the case of programming languages, newer usually means better, because it allows for more elegant, easy, understandable and clean programming.

on the other hand, Java is fine too. it's not very hard, and also extremely powerful, and a good general all-purpose solid language (which explains its popularity). the only problem, which can be especially annoying if you're just starting out, in Python your program can say print "hello world" and that's one line, and it's a complete program. you can start coding right away in Java, you first need a class definition, a main module, and 10-15 lines of code later, you're ready to say System.out.println("hello world").

Cool, I'll look into Python.  I do plan to learn many languages though, I'm really just waiting on getting my own computer to do it with since right now it's tug-o-war for a shitty laptop.

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

Trickster Makes the World
Pranks 2
On Virtue Ethics

[Reeducation]

Satan Speaks! By Anton LaVey.
Fun to read. 

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Oh, I want to get that! I am working on too many books right now.

[GlompChomp]

Culture Warrior by Bill O'reilly. For the lulz of course. He should have called the book "1,000 reasons why the ACLU suck".

[Reeducation]

Just finished the Satan Speaks! Next one: Devils Notebook by Anton LaVey.