Several years ago I had someone ask me if I worked in computers. When I replied that I did, she told me that I must have any number of job opportunities because there seem to be so many computer job postings. I tried to explain that there are a lot of different areas and that while I may know databases very well, I am not a Java programmer nor would I be hired as a user interface developer. Unfortunately she didn't understand database, Java, user interface, nor the differences between them.
Today I had the chance to attend a series of presentation given by my company's staff of summer interns. My intern gave an excellent presentation on Kubernetes and I decided to stick around listening to others, trying to gauge how well he did. I quickly became aware of how many different disciplines there are in computer science. One person talked about a very in-depth graphics routine he spent the summer researching. Another talked about how she worked with game console software development kits (SDK's). It reminded me of how truly diverse jobs in computers can be.
Should you be interested in a computer job you might want to spend some time thinking about what interests you. My first professional experience with computers involved data and so I built my career around databases. My son has taken a liking to computer networks and so that is where he has found employment. Yes, the field of computers is large and varied. My only advice is that if you decide that a career with computers sounds right for you, continue learning. The field is always evolving and technologies from 20 years ago are different now. When I started out in databases, SQL was the language to learn. It is still applicable but now there are other data tools and to remain marketable, I have had to keep myself constantly educated.
In case you are interested, my intern did a magnificent job on his presentation and made the team proud.
Showing posts with label computer science. Show all posts
Showing posts with label computer science. Show all posts
Thursday, August 11, 2016
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Researching a New Laptop
My youngest son will be starting his first year of college in the fall and our family tradition is that I purchase him a laptop. My very first post for this blog contained my recommendation for my oldest daughter when she started college. When my youngest daughter headed to school, I followed my original advice and got the same brand of computer. When it came time for my oldest son to head to school, I had him help with the process and he decided on something else.
With my youngest son I am rethinking all of my decisions. My daughters really only need a computer for word processing and e-mail. My oldest son will finish up his Computer Science degree this April and his laptop decision was the correct one for him. My youngest son has already been accepted into the Mechanical Engineering department and so I am torn between a Windows laptop or another Mac computer. Back when dinosaurs roamed the earth and I wound my way through Electrical Engineering school, Windows was the operating system of choice. A number of the software programs throughout the discipline relied on it and could not be found for the Mac. Now I am sure things have changed but it has me wondering what the laptop of choice will be.
One nice thing about the Mac is that it will also run Windows and do so quite well. Sure I may have to set up Boot Camp on the Mac, but that isn't really that difficult. However you still pay a premium for Apple computers and can get more for your money with other laptops.
Fortunately I have some time and don't have to make that decision right now. I want my son to talk with his academic advisor and see what the school recommends. I think I know the answer but would like to be pleasantly surprised. If my son and I do decide to go with a Windows laptop, then I will have to also figure out which manufacturer to buy. I'll keep you posted what I decide.
With my youngest son I am rethinking all of my decisions. My daughters really only need a computer for word processing and e-mail. My oldest son will finish up his Computer Science degree this April and his laptop decision was the correct one for him. My youngest son has already been accepted into the Mechanical Engineering department and so I am torn between a Windows laptop or another Mac computer. Back when dinosaurs roamed the earth and I wound my way through Electrical Engineering school, Windows was the operating system of choice. A number of the software programs throughout the discipline relied on it and could not be found for the Mac. Now I am sure things have changed but it has me wondering what the laptop of choice will be.
One nice thing about the Mac is that it will also run Windows and do so quite well. Sure I may have to set up Boot Camp on the Mac, but that isn't really that difficult. However you still pay a premium for Apple computers and can get more for your money with other laptops.
Fortunately I have some time and don't have to make that decision right now. I want my son to talk with his academic advisor and see what the school recommends. I think I know the answer but would like to be pleasantly surprised. If my son and I do decide to go with a Windows laptop, then I will have to also figure out which manufacturer to buy. I'll keep you posted what I decide.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Context Switching
Computers seem to able to do many things at the same time. Before the days of multi-core central processing units (CPUs), this was accomplished with a bit of magic. The computer could never perform simultaneous actions and had to rely on tricks to make it seem like that was happening. Assuming the CPU was trying to work on 3 different tasks at the same time, it would do the following:
The process of "making a note of what was done" is known in computer science as a "context switch." There is a lot that takes place on the computer, but it runs so fast that the user thinks 3 things are going on at the same time.
People are not much different than computers. We also have to perform a "context switch" when we are trying to do multiple things at the same time. During the course of writing this blog entry, I was also on the phone working on solving a computer hardware problem. As long as I didn't have to participate in the conversation, I could add to the post. The moment someone needed my help, I had to stop typing and pay attention to the conversation. There was no need to "make a note of what was done" because it remained on my computer screen. Therefore context switches were fairly painless. There was a little time lost when I was no longer needed on the phone as I had to regain my train of thought, but it wasn't too painful.
Things that make context switching hard for people are the number of simultaneous tasks and the duration allowed to work on those tasks. Typing and talking on the phone worked because I was only trying to do two things. It also worked because I was needed on the phone only for a minute out of every quarter hour (it was a long phone call). Now if I had been on the phone, driving in traffic, and trying to eat a burger, things would not be so simple. While I might get away with it once or twice, eventually I wouldn't be able to context switch fast enough and might cause an accident. That is why I never eat and drive at the same time . . . while also trying to talk on the phone.
- Work on task 1 for a bit and then make a note of what was done.
- Work on task 2 for a bit and then make a note of what was done.
- Work on task 3 for a bit and then make a note of what was done.
- Repeat until all 3 tasks are completed.
The process of "making a note of what was done" is known in computer science as a "context switch." There is a lot that takes place on the computer, but it runs so fast that the user thinks 3 things are going on at the same time.
People are not much different than computers. We also have to perform a "context switch" when we are trying to do multiple things at the same time. During the course of writing this blog entry, I was also on the phone working on solving a computer hardware problem. As long as I didn't have to participate in the conversation, I could add to the post. The moment someone needed my help, I had to stop typing and pay attention to the conversation. There was no need to "make a note of what was done" because it remained on my computer screen. Therefore context switches were fairly painless. There was a little time lost when I was no longer needed on the phone as I had to regain my train of thought, but it wasn't too painful.
Things that make context switching hard for people are the number of simultaneous tasks and the duration allowed to work on those tasks. Typing and talking on the phone worked because I was only trying to do two things. It also worked because I was needed on the phone only for a minute out of every quarter hour (it was a long phone call). Now if I had been on the phone, driving in traffic, and trying to eat a burger, things would not be so simple. While I might get away with it once or twice, eventually I wouldn't be able to context switch fast enough and might cause an accident. That is why I never eat and drive at the same time . . . while also trying to talk on the phone.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
The Last Lecture
Last night I was feeling a little frustrated with the computer and so I decided to search for “Funniest YouTube Videos”. I find that watching funny videos is a great way to get myself laughing and feeling good. There were the usual videos that appeared and then I stumbled upon Time Magazine’s list of YouTube’s 50 Best Videos. Naturally there was some duplication of things I had seen earlier, but it was a long list and so I started going through them.
One video that stood out on the list was “Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture.” I had read about how this university professor had been diagnosed with cancer and was shortly going to die. Until now, I have resisted watching the video because I didn’t want to be reminded of my own mortality and mistakenly thought that would be very apparent. Boy was I wrong. The title of the lecture is something along the lines of how to accomplish your childhood dreams. Randy does a great job of outlining his own childhood dreams and then how he went about making them reality. He then talks about the satisfaction of helping others achieve their childhood dreams.
I would have to say that it was a great lecture. While I only watched part of the other videos on Time Magazine’s list, I watched all one hour and sixteen minutes of Randy’s. While I have managed to live out some of my own childhood dreams I definitely learned a lot. I even forwarded the link to my own nineteen-year-old son who is preparing to move to Romania for the next two years. Hopefully he appreciates the sage advice.
One video that stood out on the list was “Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture.” I had read about how this university professor had been diagnosed with cancer and was shortly going to die. Until now, I have resisted watching the video because I didn’t want to be reminded of my own mortality and mistakenly thought that would be very apparent. Boy was I wrong. The title of the lecture is something along the lines of how to accomplish your childhood dreams. Randy does a great job of outlining his own childhood dreams and then how he went about making them reality. He then talks about the satisfaction of helping others achieve their childhood dreams.
I would have to say that it was a great lecture. While I only watched part of the other videos on Time Magazine’s list, I watched all one hour and sixteen minutes of Randy’s. While I have managed to live out some of my own childhood dreams I definitely learned a lot. I even forwarded the link to my own nineteen-year-old son who is preparing to move to Romania for the next two years. Hopefully he appreciates the sage advice.
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