[worksonmine]

> The point of the post is that abstractions are inevitable and you choose your own level. And: you can be a great programmer without knowing C.

Absolutely, but I get the feeling you're taking the common statement "learning C can be a great experience" and bastardazing it into a straw-man "you NEED to learn C" that you then argue against.

I just think it's an obvious statement and it reads like you're being nagged by people to learn, but you don't want to learn C and defend your position. For me nothing has taught me so much about development than a weekend hacking in C and stepping through the code with Valgrind or reading the binary output did. And I recommend all my peers do the same, most don't and that's okay. But I think it's a shame that people in general don't seem to care that much outside of work.

I did enjoy the read though, even if clickbaity.

[nedbat]

I was reacting to someone literally saying, "Everyone should learn C because it teaches you how computers really work." In my experience it's no an uncommon recommendation. Yes, people also say, "learning C can be a great experience," and I agree.

[worksonmine]

It gave me a better understanding of how computers really work. If you already have a CS degree that might not be the case, but he has a point and the experience opened a whole new world for me. Something I assumed was too difficult for me for a long time. Add Valgrind and watch the assembly while stepping line by line, taught me so much.

Why C as opposed to other languages? It's portable and very simple on the surface, there's not much to it but difficult enough to be a teachable opportunity.