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Holy fucking shit. I just went to my first Java class at uni (3 1/2 hour long one at that) and I havent felt so damn irritated in a while.

Some background:
So first, I only had about an hour of sleep last night and a full day of work before this class so I was more cranky than normal.
Theres only 7 students in the class, 6 others plus me. I am the only one with any resemblence of programming experience. The teacher also claims to be a linux developer.
This is a three part course series. Java 1, 2, and 3. All taught by the same teacher.

The fuckery:
-teacher spends 48 minutes talking about text editors. Not even IDEs. Just talking in depth as fuck about notepad (notepad. Not notepad++ )and atom and textpad. Those three only though, nothing on vim or emacs or ACTUAL IDEs. 48 minutes.
- I briefly mentioned learning node.js on the side and am now the "javascript girl" to my teacher. I'm probably less experienced with js than any other thing i ever practised or studied.
-professor saw linux on laptop and asked what distro. When I said arch he said "oh no you shouldnt be using that Its not really for beginners" ... Uhh what makes you think I'm a beginner to linux? Or does he not think I should be using arch while learning java? Either way its really ridiculous and irritates me that he would discourage anyone from using any software/OS/anything, regardless of what it is or skill level.
-teacher moved a bunch of content out of the course because theyre either "concepts that are never implemented anymore" or "arent critical to know to master the language". These particular topics that were removed? Multi-dimensional arrays, scopes, and exception handling. EXCEPTION HANDLING.
-he writes a hello world program and displays it on the board, proof of it working and everything. He tells the class to write the same program, compile and run it. Never did I guess we would spend the remaining hour and ten minutes of class struggling with fucking hello world programs. Especially when the correct code is on the fucking projector.

And I get it guys, everyone starts somewhere. People have to learn from square one. But these kids have no fucking interest in this. One of them literally admitted to pursuing this degree for the "lavish life" that comes with the salary. Others just picked programming because they didnt know what else to choose to get into the school. It fucking saddens me. I hope that one or some of them end up caring and finding a passion in this field, otherwise I feel fucking sorry for them having to spaghetti code their way through life to get a paycheck cause they couldnt be bothered to put in the effort. I feel even more sorry for any devs they work with in the future too.

The other annoying bit is that I can't test out of this class!! so it looks like for either 7 hours a week ill be bored out of my fucking mind with these beginner concepts or ill be helping others fix really stupid shit in their code (like putting quotes around hello world so it would actually print the string).

Fucking hell. Waste of a semester class.

Comments
  • 36
    Here is my ++ after reading the first paragraph. Now let me read the rest.
  • 15
    I'd hate to be in a uni where you had to attend classes like that. Maybe you could still test out if you talk to somebody. Attending these classes will clearly hinder your progress.
  • 4
    Idk maybe look at it as an outreach program? Maybe if you demonstrate how programming can mean more than a paycheck you’ll inspire one of these nitwits to be not so nitwitty... idk it will probably feel like chugging Bacardi 151 up your asshole while getting a root canal with a ghost pepper up your nose, but it’s a thought
  • 1
    Despite my uni being not the best, I'm very glad my software dev classes were actually generally helpful, my only gripe was that they were primarily OO based and I don't really do OO in my job. But the principles are transferable
  • 0
    Tbh the best thing you could do is to ignore him, follow one of the billions of java tutorials out there. It's uni anyway, so he should be happy about you learning. Unless he's like my teacher and actively holds his students back 😞
  • 5
    Now imagine you are that teacher and every semester you have to deal with all those dum-dums... I completely inderstand both of you. If I were u I'd approach the teacher with your problem [being more fluent in programming than the rest in a class] - maybe you two could come up with some win-win solution
  • 1
    If you understand the core principles of programming and you care about them, you learn more by spending 15 minutes on google than others learn with a semester in uni.
  • 1
    I can relate to this so much, my networking and internet lecturer last semester would spend 40 minutes, of a 2 hour lecture that we had once a week, talking about sharks
  • 8
    "-professor saw linux on laptop and asked what distro. When I said arch he said "oh no you shouldnt be using that Its not really for beginners""

    Seeing someone using Arch should give a hint that they're not beginners ... lol
  • 1
    I agree with @netikras. I had the same scenario during my uni days. Before you approach the professor, make sure you get good marks on his/her quizzes/exams. Otherwise, they will never listen to you.
  • 0
    All the best.. Happens at once to people.
    ☺ learn other stuff.
  • 1
    Hi, you have my sympathies. I feel for you. Normally I'd blow off a rant like yours, you know, "Hard cheese on Tony," &c. But you're so clear about this, I'm having flashes of what it's like to be the only functioning organism on a planet full of complete oiks. I retired from Corporate America in 2012; it's posts like yours that bring the reality of not having to deal with fuckery like this. And it makes, not only my day; but my day and a half! Hang in there, there's yin for every yang, baby!
  • 1
    I'd do you one better. So, I study in the University of Delhi, India and last year, one of our associate professors taught us Android Programming. I was very amped up.

    He gave all lectures and took doubts in each class. We started with Hello World on Day 1 and on the day of our semester practical, more than 50% students didn't know how to do that after being lectured for the same thing more than 5 times in the entire session apart from other projects we did in labs. Can you fucking believe this?

    Now, the moral is that sometimes teachers are fed up of students' behaviour and I think as a student that they should be and so he was. When he came to teach us PHP in last session, he completed the course in a week. That's only 4 hours including practicals. That's it.

    So, the respect goes both ways and in your case I think that your teacher is irresponsibly arrogant in his own rhythm which is not good at all, for anyone under his mentorship.
  • 6
    I'm thinking that I'm still going to try my best to test out of the class, but what ive come to realize since ive written this rant is that there are class minimums.
    I need these idiots to stay in the class for three semesters. I dont know what the minimum is but lets say half the class drops java/programming after this term. Thats 3 or 4 of us left. If thats under the minimum then there will be no java II class. I will have taken this dumbass class just to relearn what I already know and then not be able to take the classes where I could actually learn and grow.
    The irritation has returned
  • 3
    Still, that would infuriate me having a professor criticize my OS/dev environment... That's a really personal choice he shouldn't be sticking his nose in.
  • 2
    When you're having the ideation of spraying the class with day-glo paint, try, try to remember: in a year this will be bullshit. Besides, it's good training for crap that will inevitably come your way; personally, I'd stick with the Day-glo paint, though. So what if it doesn't wash out? ;`}
  • 0
    Same start as we had in uni. And it became much more bearable, very quickly.

    You have people with their only real desktop experience being facebook in the introductory classes. It should get better in a week or two.

    Oh and if you have labs with TA:s, expext a quick ramp-up of the tempo.
  • 0
    Already experienced this, there will always be idiot out there

    Sorry to hear that
  • 0
    Where I went you could get advanced credit if you knew the content of the course and basically get to move straight to a higher level course instead. I started in programming 101 and logic 101 after a few days I realized I knew the course material so I did a quick test then got moved to the 200 level courses
  • 0
    “linux developer” 🧐
  • 1
    When you say you’re learning Java 1, 2, and 3, I hope that’s not the release versions you’re learning.
  • 0
    Wow, I'd get in touch with the dean and tell them that this prof is doing a very bad job and should have the course reviewed.

    If you're lucky, the course will be scrapped. Because that prof is clearly out of their element.
  • 0
    Why not just skip class and only come in to take tests and hand in homework? Is attendance really mandatory?
  • 1
    @arjaycodes no we are using java 8 version. I mean java 1 2 and 3 as in beginner, intermediate, and advanced
  • 1
    @PXL3 I already miss some of this class due to work, and honestly I just go for the off chance ill learn something. Its only been two classes so far, and after I turn in my first assignment I'm going to talk to an advisor about what options i can take to not be present in that class without getting point reductions
  • 1
    @meowijuanas I honestly gave @arjaycodes the ol - - because that was a dumbass fuckin question
  • 2
    We ridicule the "js-boy" on our class relentlessly as well. I get ridiculed for my Linux use (things just work in Windows, I get it, but I can't part with i3-wm and the feeling of superiority I have when I have to compile my own software to use it. I don't know why but I love it). We ridicule the Asian guy for copy and pasting stuff from SO because, to us, he was copy and pasted as well.

    There is always something. Don't let it get to you, don't let it define you, just take it as what it is. A joke.

    Also, next time you hand in you work you can tell him you wrote it using an IDD, buy specially for him, you copy and pasted it into notepad++ ^^
  • 0
    @jeeper I was just curious. Never taken a formal class on Java so I didn’t know.
  • 1
    I hope that you'll have the time to learn the concept of class. 😂
    For real, you have my compassion.
  • 2
    @arjaycodes I suppose I shouldn’t crush your curiosity but pretty much all programming classes will use a long term supported version of the languages. Now I’ve heard some horror stories, but it further doesn’t make sense for the classes to cover different java versions and does make sense for them to progress through programming concepts. Put some current through that molded jello between your ears!
  • 1
    to me sounds like play time :)
  • 0
    quality rant
  • 1
    God u just described my class. I have 4 ppl outta 70 who are even interested in coding. Teachers ALWAYS downgrade our lesson plans cuz of retards left and right. I feel you girl i really do
  • 0
    Why does anyone go to universities to learn to program anymore? I’m not digging on the OP but I just wonder with all the learning resources available online, what possible use is sitting in a classroom for this kind of thing? Just to say you showed up so that you qualify for credit? Seems to me the uni should instead grant credit for something more tangible and useful. Not sure if that’s a working project the dept head will define for people to pursue on their own with checkins and tests to gauge that they aren’t cheating or what but anything is better than what the OP is enduring. Damn.
  • 3
    @stackodev I agree with you. I would've strongly preferred to skip uni. However, my particular location is very adamant about hiring employees with education. Ive been rejected from 13 jobs ive interviewed for, purely for the fact that I was not in uni and did not plan on attending. As soon as I enrolled in my uni, I was hired my first interview.

    I'm not saying its impossible to get a job without a degree or high education, but in my particular position, it is much harder to find a stable and well paying job without it.
  • 6
    I dropped out of school for shit like this. Really saddening to see how so many teachers are so fucking incompetent and how so many grad students really don't give a shit (and is apparently reflected in the field too). Beautiful rant though. Have my favorite <3
  • 1
    Hey atleast you guys use projectors. We use f***** white board.

    You know I'm kinda nodeJS developer myself learned it by seeing other people code and understanding how everything works by searching it on Google.

    Used some tutorials to learn how to use expressjs.

    So by seeing uni teaching Java I pumped up and bought the Java complete reference 8th edition and learned most of the concepts and tried to implement a server using Servlet(Java as a backend)

    Well I saw the syllabus today. That subject also has PHP. To learn Java for backend took my most of the time like 3weeks.

    So the subject has:
    Unit-1: Basic Java programming.
    Unit-2: HTML, CSS.
    Unit-3: Servlet.
    Unit-4: PHP.
    Unit-5: Ajax and web services.
    That to unit-5 talks about soap requests.
    While the world developed RESTapi, GraphQL. It kills me, everything pumped into one single mother****** subject.

    Also we have to do a mini project and the teacher said you have to do something with IOT, AI she said every single buzzwords.
  • 0
    And the subject staff is like say some other boy to write code on the board(because he has handwriting of Leonardo Da Vinci).

    After that guy wrote the code he just explains it by reading the code loud.

    There are 54 people and no one has even remote knowledge about what does
    <H1> tag does in html</H1>

    And those people aren't even interested in learn from other known people. Even I'm interested teaching those people programming, but they all be like "duh! Who are you to teach us."

    I literally hate my Univ life.😤

    Since I'm in India if we don't have an UG degree no one will give us job.

    *Sighs*
  • 0
    Wait, what salary?
  • 0
    @Oel2 no salary. I have a contract position so my hourly rate and hours change by client or project.

    @litesam126 there are definitely tons of things that annoy me with schools, textbooks, and some guides. I find it rather hard to find material that actually does a good job of explaining concepts, so most of the time I'm looking up code and just figuring out what it does line by line and why its there. On the other hand, I have been wanting to learn node, express and the like. Any recommendations for learning in that area? I feel like ive read tons of articles and documentation and still feel clueless
  • 1
    @meowijuanas I meant the "lavish life that comes with the salary" part xD
  • 0
    @Oel2 oh! My mistake 😊

    @theKarlisK or they "teach by example" where they make you build some trivial webpage in the exact way theyre doing it without explaining what each thing theyre doing does so that by the end you know how to make that website but not how it works or how to reproduce it in any variation
  • 1
    @meowijuanas

    Actually for NodeJS I also followed some articles but within some few hours I deleted my whole OS so that I can reduce my tension, most of them don't know how to write a book. Having a book will be good for reference purposes. But I don't have one.

    Academind channel in YouTube created two playlists for NodeJS so I learned the basics and used some articles to learn more about mongodb and tried to mimic a chat-app it's kinda chat-room wrbsite that I saw from GitHub, did that 65% but did not style that website chat-app. So did not upload the code.

    I also took visual studio Dev essentials which will give a free three month subscription and I took Jonathan Mills course from that.

    Then later college started, so didn't had time to work again with NodeJS.
  • 0
    I'd say "Great! A class I can spend catching up in my other classes. Too bad for the tuition cost, but that's life, eh?"
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