Well my progression in programming is probably going to be cut short. Yesterday my dad told me that programming is a waste of my time and I should find something else to do. He says that it is a waste of time because he thinks whatever I am programming is 5 years behind technology. I don't know if that's true or not though.. I am pretty sure C is still programmed and used. I guess I'll just have to program when he isn't home.

Encouragement is always necessary but TI is really fun and you need to make this decision, not your dad.

Yeah I know. Obviously I like programming, but he won't let me on his computer anymore lol. So I don't have a computer to use.

sorry about the TI when you program C. Explain to him what you can do and/or make something that will knock his socks off.

Programming on a TI device gives you the knowledge to program minimally. You learn to not waste space and speed, you learn solid programming concepts, both of which are important things in today's programming world. A lot of programmers just program stuff, and don't care how their code looks or how bloated their program gets (ex: Adobe), they just expect you to buy that quad core 4Ghz proc with 16GB of RAM to run their stuff (all exaggerations, but you get the idea). And C is used in all sorts of things, though most evolve off to branches like C# and C++.

The only real way you will be able to combat this, though, is to get yourself your own computer to learn your programming.

Your father should read Chapter 1 of "Programming the TI-83 Plus/TI-84 Plus", which is freely available on Manning's website in PDF form (via http://manning.com/mitchell/ ). It explains the value of calculator programming as a springboard to professional programming, essentially in a more elaborate form of what tifreak8x said.

Also, a TI calculator has a lot of commonality with "real" embedded systems. Basically, the skills to program a calculator are very similar to the skills needed to effectively program the microcontroller that controls your furnace, your coffee maker, your oven, your car's instrument cluster, or your washing machine.

There's money in that.

or build one. and if your dad spouts off any more like this, tell him that what you do isnt 5 years behind. let him know that "Just because something doesnt have the super fancy gui that clutters up life doesnt mean its behind."

besides, if he stops you from programming, then how would you ever learn to "Catch up?"

Absolute fertilizer-grade bullshit.

That's like telling an ameteur artist to stop painting because they're unable to produce something gallery-worthy. Before you can paint a masterpiece you must study, and before you can program in the industry, you must study and practice and experiment. What better way to do that than with a household embedded device? C is used a lot in industry, and knowing it is a definite advantage (much like knowing assembly languages.) As long as you do keep up to date with the most popular languages/platforms/innovations (that are useful in the fields of study you're looking into -- which could be C, in fact), you're advancing yourself.

Or you could find a new hobby, like collecting already-used liberty bell stamps, reading outdated revisionist history textbooks, or listening to K-Pop. Might as well do something "useless" in style.

Programming is certainly a criticized knowledge, but it's a well-sought after skill. Show/Tell/Convince him that this is a career you want to pursue. Bring up salary figures and perhaps show him http://www.code.org

My friends who are programmers have the most expendable income of anyone I know. $65k/yr starting salary is pretty normal, and that's for people coming out of a relatively unknown school.

This seems like a good time for the Occupational Outlook Handbook! Giving you the latest on software jobs!

Have him call me.

Haha that actually doesn't sound like a bad idea.

I hope your dad will let you keep programming. It's nice to have more programmers around to help and be helped to improve skills. Good luck with all this.

Uncle Merth will fix things up

But yes, don't be discouraged. That's just a bad or uninformed attitude being displayed by your Dad, which might not even be his fault (I don't know the guy, so who am I to judge?), but regardless, as you've seen, we can all testify that programming is not a waste of time, whether you're doing it to build a career, or as a hobby, or both.

I don't regret any of the time I've spent over the last 15 years programming. And I still consider myself a novice coder - most of that time programming has been just as a hobby, something that I do because I find it entertaining. It's only in the last 6 months that I've finally picked up some programming as part of my job. And I can personally guarantee that the time I've spent coding as a hobby has certainly given me experience that's helping with what I do now.

I hope you're able to overcome this issue zeldaking