From: Picklegnome <picklegnome@...>
Date: 2006-07-27T04:40:05+09:00
Subject: OO Paradigm and Ruby Exercises for a Beginner

I am at a loss for where to begin here, so I'll jump in.

    I have worked with several languages, and Ruby is the first one I've
really felt good about. I picked up the Pickaxe book and read through it.
While I get confused at times when "shortcuts" are used (there seem to be a
half-dozen valid ways to do almost anything, with various amounts of
verbosity and code needed - I am used to using explicit "return" statements,
for example) I haven't had much trouble understanding the syntax.
    However, I find that I am running into roadblocks when I attempt to
program anything remotely complex. I've looked at many of the exercises in
Chris Pine's _Learn to Program_ and I don't find these too difficult,
especially since they seem to be focused around syntax. I suspect my
frustration is with the object oriented paradigm. I have a superficial
understanding of Classes and Objects and such, and I understand why OO is
useful. However, I am befuddled by much of the code that I read. While it is
possible that I am simply not proficient at algorithm design and am unable
to follow algorithms that are designed by others, I suspect that it is more
deeply rooted in my lack of "getting" OO.

I've got no idea what resources might be used to overcome this problem, and
I am not even certain of my diagnosis. However, I would appreciate any
suggestions, resources, or help that you could offer me, because I am
excited about Ruby and eager to get past this blockage.

Thanks,
Picklegnome


P.S. I apologize for not using my real name; I understand this to be bad
etiquette. As I am a minor, my parents feel I am "at risk" and have asked me
to keep all such information private. I hope not to offend by following
their instruction.