interestingly enough, this is how i felt when going from rails to python/django.
i felt like i had much more control and the admin section really sold me.
rails always felt a bit "too magical" for me. I could get anything done, but I didn't know why or how. I didn't feel like I was getting much better as a programmer. With Python, I felt like I was getting better after the first day.
I've been thinking about something like this for awhile.
As a developer who works mostly freelance from home, I do engage with some other developers when working on agency contract work, but these engagements are infrequent and I find most of the team to be on the same skill level as myself. The bulk of my other work is solo projects for smaller businesses.
With that being said, for somebody like myself, I find it tough to meet other people who I would consider a mentor.
The only mentor types I have met have been very short lived relationships due to the short term nature of our contracts. I have felt it would be unprofessional to contact them outside of the work and after the working relationship has ended.
For the better part of this year, I have read something computer science related almost everyday. I have made it a day by day mission to better my skill set and understanding of everything computer science. Going at it alone isn't easy sometimes.
I actually wouldn't be able to put into words how grateful and happy I would be, to able to meet and have a long term friendship with a "mentor", even somebody I checked in with just once a week through email, irc, telephone, etc.
So hacker news, where can I find somebody like this?
i felt like i had much more control and the admin section really sold me.
rails always felt a bit "too magical" for me. I could get anything done, but I didn't know why or how. I didn't feel like I was getting much better as a programmer. With Python, I felt like I was getting better after the first day.