/ot/ - off-topic

>>136332
i went through my 1337 hax stage and ddosed and hacked pedos, not really interested anymore

>>136333
I thought about being a H4X0R

But then I realized I wasn't austisic or ugly, and don't have to work 12 hours a day.

I'm an electrical engineer. Only went into it because I find math really easy. Don't find it interesting and I hate my job but at least I make a lot of money. Meh.

>>136333
At least you were hacking pedos, you know, and not anyone on the other side of the spectrum!

>>136335
Currently considering switching my shitty humanities major to engineering or a hard science like physics. It means I'll have to work my ass off AND take longer to graduate but holy shit I do not want to write bullshit papers on SJW topics anymore or sit in a class/work a future job with that kind of person

>>136337
I switched from a language major to management, best decision ever.

Yes, I'm a filthy webdev by day, and an actual programmer by night. I have too many projects on my mind and too little time, so it depresses me, but at least my github repo is very active and it brings me immense pleasure seeing my projects grow. I wish I could get rid off all the soykaff in my life. I hate js frameworks with passion.

>>136338
What language were you majoring in?

>>136340
Moonspeak

Never got into programming beyond the shitty Myspace page coding, but I do build computers and have taught boyfriends how to do so.

>>136343
>build computers

Any tips and resources for learning how to do this?

>>136342
Not sure how this relates to hacking but I am, and it's as boring as you'd imagine. A means to an end. I really can't imagine anyone being excited about this profession.

>>136344
Haven't dabbled in it too much myself, but the process is actually pretty straightforward and it honestly just comes down to compatibility and price.

I used to have active GitHub repos, but those days have come and gone.

>>136345
Accounting gives you a decent, stable living though and it doesn't seem that hard.

polite sage

>>136344
Your best bet when starting out is to take apart an old PC that isn't used anymore so you can see what all the necesary components generally look like and figure out how things connect. Then look at builds other people have put together for purposes similar to yours (gaming, art, audio, etc), and buy those parts to put together the PC yourself. Once you have a good handle on the actual assembly and what parts are, then you can get into the deeper stuff like figuring out how to pick parts and build your own PC.

PCpartpicker is a good resource for figuring out parts and compatibility.

What parts you go with depends on what you're using it for, and a lot of the super high end more expensive stuff is actually not necessary unless you're a hardcore modder of single player games. "Futureproofing" (the act of paying more money for higher end parts so you won't have to upgrade as soon) is also bullshit.

There's 4chan's /g/ board and Reddit's r/buildapc which can be pretty helpful (g hates it when poeple come there looking for tech support though). Tom's Hardware has a good deal of guides and troubleshooting threads.

>>136337
Wait, so you want to go into eng/physics just to get out of humanities? If so, that isn't a very reason to change your major, unless you've actually researched what's involved. Especially with these majors, as it can get really difficult. Just wanted to make sure that you're considering switching for good reasons.

>>136349
I was venting about the sorry state of humanities education at the average US university lol but yes I have actually begun researching and talking to people in some pretty cool fields like pharmacology. I want to be a part of something that is going to grow and potentially improve our lives and that I am actually excited about. And I'm not going to get that by staying on my current path.

>>136347
It's the excel equivalent of a conveyor belt assembly job. Mind numbing and something monkeys can be trained to do. It does have good growth prospects though, you can go from an accountant to a controller/treasurer and even CFO if you work in a company long enough. Of course that's less likely to happen to us millennials (maybe when I get my very first prosthetic hip) but the option is there.

I'm majoring in Ecological Engineering and although I find it interesting, I'm a little nervous because although my school is one of the few with a proper undergrad program in Ecological Engineering (accredited and all), there still isn't much precedent so I'll have to be able to "sell myself" to employers after I graduate. I also feel kind of silly taking such a "fluffY" engineering course. I still have to know the hard basics, all the math and physics and stuff, but I get to focus on Biology and soil and shit as well, which interests me more.

>>136347

I'm a C.I.S major and the hardest class I had was accounting lol.

It's probably because I hate it, but even the accoubring majors had a hard time.

Programmer and computer science student here. I'm good at it, but sometimes I regret not becoming an underpaid graphics designer.

>>136354
graphic design is shit, SHIT! Aside from competing with pajeets and other third world peasants that will offer services for peanuts (the quality shows for it), you don't really have much room for creativity because you need to follow certain trends. Graphic design is also a huge timesink.
If you really wish to become a graphic designer you can always take some classes after you finish main studies and try it yourself.

i have question

How hard is software programming/developmemt? because im switching next year

>>136356
Try it out. There are tons of resources online. I'm going to say though, if you don't enjoy it at first you probably won't like it as a career. And keep in mind that in software development you have to constantly be coding for side projects.

>>136332
Network engineering apprentice at a city carrier reporting in

compsci major here. gonna rant about some bitches in my department.

i hate how many virtue signaling "feminists" / "i'm not like other girls" types are in here. one in particular likes to pretend she's disadvantaged when she came from a rich af school and already had 2-3 years of programming experience while being apart of the majority race here. another tried to get a girlz group together but it went nowhere because she spends most of her time chasing dick (how the fuck she manages to be considered thirsty in a 90% male department is a feat, truly). the one i hate the most graduated and went on a feminist blog claiming that our department was sexist and she was "talked down to" by professors. newsflash the professors question everyone about their code before providing help, and people disregarded you because you're a huge bitch. and then one rando told our newspaper she doesn't dress up for school because she just wants to be seen as an engineer! not a girl! how fucking egoistical to think that guys will grovel at your feet and girls who take care of themselves just don't exist in this department.

a lot of girls here have been fed the idea that they're special and been given asspats to their sub-par code because of our rarity. they do nothing for our community (i know because i've been apart of the student organization leadership for 1.5 years now) while using any perceived slight on their crusade against sexism and mean boys in the tech field :((( some want to be apart of the in-group but can't handle any roasting/shit-talking so we have to treat them like delicate flowers.

i just want to see more traditionally nerdy/geeky girls like me instead of normies reeeee. i can't talk to any of them about vidya, anime, etc. or even compsci in depth because most of them are career programmers.

on a less angry note, what's everyone's favorite and least favorite programming languages? i like to balance between c++ and python, and i hate fucking hate that piece of shit java

also anyone keeping up with silicon valley? i want jared to be my waifu so much

>>191379
>one in particular likes to pretend she's disadvantaged when she came from a rich af school and already had 2-3 years of programming experience while being apart of the majority race here
Let me guess, her name is Susan Fowler, kek

>>191379
I agree with you on the try hard girl shit. I already have my bachelor's degree but holy fuck throughout college were there a bunch of girls that would solely join clubs or sign up for classes to look ~smart n geeky~ all while can't even explain what the fuck a syntax is lmfao.

I actually like Java, favorite is Assembly. My concentration was originally Networking, then I switched it to AI. Was in a robotics club, small but it was fun I miss it rip.

>>136356
Samefag but for references for help, what helped me through college was Khan Academy and as far as Calc goes use Wolfram Alpha.

Code Academy is fun, just a bit dinky imo. But it's good for beginners.

I am a C.S. major but it is certainly not my passion and I don't do any projects in my free time. I'm doing pretty well though. I only picked it as a major because I spend a lot of time online and knew some code beforehand, so I thought 'why not,' because I had no other career interests. Still unsure what I want to do with my degree but every internship is for software engineering or IT.

>>191379
SMLR was my favorite one

>>191379
I'm in CIS and know the type you're talking about.

>and then one rando told our newspaper she doesn't dress up for school because she just wants to be seen as an engineer! not a girl! how fucking egoistical to think that guys will grovel at your feet and girls who take care of themselves just don't exist in this department.

Thiiiis is the only thing I kind of disagree with, as I've found that there are dudes who will take you less seriously for being feminine, even if you know your shit. Female STEM people I know seem to either milk being cute or rail against it depending on which works. I take care of myself and do my own thing, and stuff has turned out alright for me because I'm known as "brainy." I've gotten my share of being unicorn-ed by dudes who go ZOMG TECH GRILL but it's gotten less frequent the older people get and they tend to see me as a complete individual.

The other thing is I love screwing with people, but sometimes the competitiveness of the field transcends fun into just being catty and counterproductive.

One of my pet peeves is people acting like they know everything while fucking things up, or correcting me while not even being right, or when I was right to begin with. I doubt myself a lot and fact-check without realizing most people Google shit anyway, and I'm usually right about the stuff I doubt myself on. I don't know if it's female socialization or regular perfectionism.

I also fucking hate Java, and Javascript in particular can _die in a fucking fire._ Modern web design makes my skin crawl, but I'm a shitty designer and don't do it either so I can't change it.

>>191462
I agree with some dudes taking you less seriously for being feminine, but I'm describing the situation where I attend school and it's definitely not the case here.

I just sent off my resume to a professor, hopefully I get that summer research position. It's in machine learning which I know nothing about but hopefully I can just learn on the job. Wish me luck guys \o/

Anyone gonna be working on projects or learning new skills over the summer?

>>193031
I'ma finance/accounting nerd so not in STEM and a total beginner but I am looking to learn Python and some basic web design stuff (HTML, CSS, does anyone even use PHP anymore?) over the summer and make something neat with that.

I'm learning some basic webdev knowledge through free courses on Udacity. Don't know how this will turn out, since I have dyscalculia and complex math makes my brain shut down, lmao.
If I find out that Javascript is too hard for me I'll just switch to the HTML route, since I'm already very familiar with that.

I'm just finishing up my Computer Systems Technology diploma. Fun shit. I wanna make web/android apps. I enjoy it a ton, but a lot of the deadlines have been particularly tough.

>>136356
It's initially hard. Learning how to tell a program to do tasks in an order and understanding how programatically things need to happen. HOWEVER, once it clicks you're basically good to learn any of the programming languages fairly easily as you're basically doing the same things, just in maybe a slightly different way.

>>193042
I used the MIT Python course on Edx as my introduction to programming. I just finished my second year of CS and it's still one of the most rewarding classes I've taken. https://www.edx.org/course/introduction-computer-science-mitx-6-00-1x-10

Yeah no one really uses PHP anymore and it's considered a mess of a language. The crowds move on to some new and shiny version of Javascript.

>>193144
Tbh I prefer working in PHP, even though I'm fluent and have no problems working in JS. Node and Vue are ok, though they solve different things (node works also on the server side, Vue is mostly for the frontend of things). But there are so many js frameworks nowadays and most of them are just bloated.
The reason why I prefer PHP is because it's easier to maintain a project, in short it's rather stable while with a js framework and its dependencies it can cause headaches when the project gets older. Js is faster, that's true.

Sadly, most of the popularity that PHP gets goes to WordPress and you don't even have to be a programmer to manage or build WordPress themes.

Laravel is a fresh way to approach and build projects, small or on an enterprise scale. So, if you're considering PHP despite its negatives, you should definitely check it out.

However, if I had to choose I would still prefer to work in Python/Django than PHP.

> I used the MIT Python course on Edx as my introduction to programming.

Second this. It's an extremely good course. Also check CS50 introduction to programming.

On a side note, I'm really considering starting a site for women aspiring to be in an STEM field or that already are. It will probably be slow in traffic but it would be nice to discuss IT related things there, from learning resources to job opportunities and most importantly, sharing experience. W-what do you think?

>>193162
>On a side note, I'm really considering starting a site for women aspiring to be in an STEM field or that already are. It will probably be slow in traffic but it would be nice to discuss IT related things there, from learning resources to job opportunities and most importantly, sharing experience. W-what do you think?

I think it's been done to death already, and by women who can't even program and are just jumping on the bandwagon for relevance and feminism points (see: Kode with Klossy. Gag.) The same is happening in business with every Tom Dick and Harry with an Etsy or a local online store selling bootleg fidget spinners calling themselves an entrepreneur and going to business talks, and it's actually ruining business as a career path.

Mind you I'm not saying you're going to do that (quite the opposite), but that it's either going to attract normies who can't program and don't want to learn, or alt-right trolls DDoSing you because they think you're just another Karlie Kloss, or both.

I'd love for more people to get into serious stuff like programming or starting a company but there's always a group of neanderthals who just see it as a tool for self-promotion and an accessory instead of a viable hobby and I'm worried it'll eventually go the way of goths and cosplay.

>>193175
Samefagging to add, because I forgot: Maybe it's just online communities that turn into shitfests and you'd have better luck doing it irl, starting a college club or a small co-op or something?

I'd love to talk to more women about programming and topics that I usually have to discuss with men of the 4chan persuasion and pretend I'm a guy, but I just can't stand the whole rah rah rah feminism schtick that's popular nowadays, I want to talk about actual topics related to the subject.

>>193175
>>193177
Yeah I can see what you're trying to say. On one hand I wouldn't want to see the site turn into a kode with klossy meme because that's precisely what I'd like to avoid but on the other hand I really wish there was a serious board for programming. It would be interesting to see how a women majority site with STEM topics would go. That said, it was just a thought because with my current schedule and workload there's no way I could even start within two months.

> but that it's either going to attract normies who can't program and don't want to learn, or alt-right trolls DDoSing you because they think you're just another Karlie Kloss, or both.

Those are my fears. In any case, I will take your advice. I'll start a site with few girls from uni and see where it takes us.

> I think it's been done to death already, and by women who can't even program and are just jumping on the bandwagon for relevance and feminism points (see: Kode with Klossy. Gag.)

I really hate how they make it more difficult for women to be taken seriously, especially in this field. Though frankly I wouldn't have heard of kode with klossy if it weren't for imageboards and there are plenty of bad male programmers that are popular too.

I'm starting a CS degree in the fall. idk why but it's giving me a lot of anxiety thinking about it.

For those who're in progress/completed a degree, how much group work is there? I've had nothing but trash experiences and am 110% wary of them. Also, are the diversity memes real? I work at a tech start up rn and had a nonwhite male coworker rant at me about muh minorities in tech (i'm also not white). Having to listen to people ~confide~ in me about this stuff/the unicorn treatment is really tiresome.


>>193175
Maybe you could try making a thread here or on crystal.cafe

>>193183
For my 2 year diploma I've had several group projects, 4 of which I'd consider major and were 2+ people. A few were optional to work on your own, but you might be so deep in work you'll want to offload some to a partner.

Anyone use linux? What distro, and have any recommendations for beginners?
I am getting a new laptop soon that needs to stay Windows for school, but I want to try it out on my old one. I'm really interested in using more free/open source software and having more privacy. I was thinking of starting with Ubuntu or maybe Mint (also pretty interested in ricing and customization)

>>193302
I've got Arch on my PC and Fedora on a laptop right now. Haven't really played around much with Fedora yet though.

Ubuntu and Mint are definitely the best starting points I think. I'd say over the two Ubuntu is probably easier to use/more common and has more support.

>>191379
Im finding it hard to make friends with others since im 26 and theyre all 19 ree.

I have yet to meet any really or actually commit to a project. Im up to date on silicon valley. Did you see halt and catch fire? Its the last season.

>>193183
in my experience there are a few (maybe 2-4 depending)

tbh the girl-boy ratio is like 4 girls to every 40 guys

>>193302
I use Debian and it's nice and not too complicated for anyone starting out.