From: Navindra Umanee <navindra@...>
Date: 2005-02-14T16:13:23+09:00
Subject: Re: Printing why's (poignant) guide to ruby

Caio Tiago Oliveira <caiot1@ibest.com.br> wrote:
> def fib:
> 	a, b = 1, 1
> 	while true:
> 		yield a
> 		a, b = b, a+b
> 
> It fails. Ask why! Because are missing '()' after 'fib'.

Um yeah the whole program is syntactically wrong.  Fortunately Python
tells you there's an error on practically every single line.  

Learning and understanding syntax is one of the first steps of a
newbie, even with something like Scheme which doesn't really have much
of a syntax.  I believe it is an important first step.  

If you don't have a clue about the basics like this, you'll soon fail
miserably whether you're using Ruby or not.  And come-on, who's going
to explain yield and blocks to a newbie?

Why do you think Java became so popular?  The creators have often said
it is because the language started out with a relatively small number
features and wasn't overwhelming to intermediate programmers.

I'm trying to context-switch to the point of view of a newbie.  I
believe starting small is important when learning.

Cheers,
Navin.