[ericgj]

Hey, Philip - thanks for posting this and also the previous write-up of your experiences as a helper in the 'boot camp' (http://pgbovine.net/teaching-librarians-programming.htm). It is very valuable, including the photos. Very nice, multi-generational group - must have been quite a challenge!

But I agree with calhoun137 when he says there is no fundamental user/programmer culture divide. Programmers are users with a deeper understanding and wider toolset. We all want to get stuff done quickly and move on with our lives rather than drown in computer-driven drudge work. So it seems like a course for beginners should start from that common point, and really be focused on (a) uncovering the problems they're already solving by hacking together the tools they know (e.g. getting data into Excel charts, or whatever) and (b) using the inefficiencies in their solutions to motivate learning or building tools with more leverage, etc.

I can't help but think from your description, the student "regular users" are the ones with a pragmatic/hacker approach, using the limited tools they know -- while the instructor "programmers" are the users stuck in religious attachment to their arcane tools. Maybe the course would go better adopting some of that "regular user culture", AKA hacking ;)

I'm sure it was more complicated than that and for one thing I can really empathize with having to deal with massive variety of platforms etc. Might be worth setting up a common VirtualBox image that everyone (students and instructors) use from day 1, to avoid some of that headache?

Anyway, thanks again for the write-up.

Eric