You’ve shed light on something I’ve wondered about for a long time. My first computer was a Commodore 128. I took my first computer class in 1985. I taught myself DOS. The internet (we called it USEnet back then) was accessed via 9600 baud AIM modem.

Back in 1985, our class covered (to my recollection) hardware, machine language, binary and hex coding, and processes, i.e., clocks, registers, etc. The only routers I saw in my school were over in wood shop! For what computers did at that time, the course was adequate.

What I’ve wondered about over the years as the internet boomed and Cisco became the first of many missed investment opportunities, is what does an intro computer class look like today? My suspicion is that the elites Mr. Genereux refers to, and whom I’ve worked alongside, are almost entirely self-taught. They went to a trade school, got their Microsoft, Novell, Cisco certs, and carved out some comfortable careers for themselves.

This is not to bash the schools. The technology has evolved so quickly that most could not stay ahead of the changes under the best circumstances. It’s time for curriculum managers to consider that evolution and revisit what is meant when we speak of computers and computing. In any event, I certainly agree that we need to standardize the basic elements of a computer science class so that it better reflects the state of the industry.

Kudos on your thought-provoking post!

Alfonse Nobile
Communications Dir.
The V.I.E.W. Program
http://www.viewprogram.org