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Edsger Dijkstra interview

Hans Otten

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YouTube
  • Recommended by 1 person: 1 on Hacker News.
  • Presented by Edsger Dijkstra
  • An opinion. It argues one side of a question engineers disagree on.

Beginner. No background in the topic needed.

34K views8 years ago1 recommendation

History and cultureComputer scienceHistory of computingPeople who shaped computing

Edsger Dijkstra discusses his views on computer science, writing programs systematically by hand, and keeping errors out of software.

Dutch mathematician, very influential in the computer science.

Why it's here

1 person recommends this

What people say. Recommended for Dijkstra's insights on software correctness, writing code by hand, and the history of computer science.

ZoomZoomZoomon Hacker News • Recommends

On “Why (and How) I Write Code with Pencil and Paper”

Any discussion of handwritten code is incomplete without mentioning Edsger Dijkstra's approach, demonstrated in this beautiful interview: link to this video I'm surprised no one has mentioned it here yet.
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ly3xqhl8g9on Hacker News • Mentions

On “Dijkstra comparing computer science to alchemy (1989)”

…British education is pervaded by it. People learn, when they write, not to try to get it right the first time. Just write what's on your mind and then rewrite repeatedly to get the product you want. That's partly why word processors are marketed so aggressively and partly why they have been so successful there." 1 1 Edsger Dijkstra interview, link to this video…
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eesmithon Hacker News • Mentions

On “Edsger Dijkstra carried computer science on his shoulders (2020)”

You can see the vehicle at link to this video . He and his wife are driving to some sort of camping area. It's part of a longer interview with him. He also does crossword puzzles.
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rednabon Hacker News • Mentions

On “Dijkstra's interview on Dutch TV (2000)”

link to this video The Dutch language quote as displayed: "We mogen niet uit nonchalance fouten in een programma aanbrengen. Dat moeten we systematisch en met zorg doen.". Feel free to run that through your favorite translator. The subtitles: "We should not introduce errors through sloppiness but systematically keep them out." The translator missed a very dry and very Dijkstra joke.
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