Introduction to Perl for non-programming Mac folk

[Christopher Jones]

On 23 Dec 2008, at 12:25, Paul Makepeace wrote:

> On Tue, Dec 23, 2008 at 12:16 PM, Peter Corlett <abuse at cabal.org.uk>  
> wrote:
>
>> On Mon, Dec 22, 2008 at 01:32:20PM +0000, Andy Wardley wrote:
>> [...]
>>>  * Knowing where to look for documentation and how to read it.
>>> Anything I've missed?
>>
>> A big lump of clue-by-four to reiterate that last point, applied  
>> repeatedly
>> until it registers, or until they stop pestering you to give the  
>> answers on
>> a plate.
>
>
> "Spoonfeeding" people at the beginning is a very powerful teaching
> technique, primarily as it builds confidence and familiarity. The  
> volume of
> information required at the beginning of learning a subject can be  
> totally
> overwhelming, and oral transmission of that knowledge is for many  
> people
> orders of magnitude more effective than reading docs.
>
> Besides, getting the response "RTFM!" is a total turn-off, even for a
> seasoned pro.

And more to the point, "RTFM" is just plain rude.



Chris


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