Mike Zamansky
2 HN recommenders · recommended in 3 months, 2020–2022
11:41 · 73K views · May 23, 2016
The first episode of Mike Zamansky's Using Emacs series, covering setting up the package manager for new Emacs users as a start toward customization and efficient editing.
Recommended as a practical, step-by-step video path for learning Emacs.
3 comments from Hacker News
I started using Emacs in earnest a few years ago, especially Org-Mode. At first, I tried every customization I came across and loaded up my init file with all the cool mods. But when things went wrong, I had no clue how to fix them. So after about a year I started over, resetting my config and using Emacs customization over custom elisp writing to get a working init file. It helped me learn a lot . This is the path I recommend: do small customizations using Emacs' built-in features, then learn elisp later. I learned a lot from this CS prof's videos, and it's a good, practical learning path I'd recommend: this video If you're into writing, I maintain a list of resources for writing with Emacs: [LINK]
You have to find specific need that emacs will fulfil. Org-mode is the key. Don't try to use it like IDE for coding for a start. I recommend start with video tutorials: 1. Mike Zamansky this video 2. Rainer König org-mode [LINK]
Programming in high school is quite different than the work you will be doing in a CS program. CS is a hard, but not impossible, major. Depending upon the school it will be perhaps easier than a Physics degree and maybe a bit more work but easier than a Math degree. There is too much CS to learn in four years so every program leaves something out. For example, some schools will require a class in Artificial Intelligence while others may not but will instead require a course in Data Science. So it's hard to know exactly what you will be studying, but I can make a few suggestions that should be helpful for someone heading off to college and planning to study CS. Generally, there is a lot of useful math that you may be required to learn. Usually one year of calculus, one semester of differential equations, one semester of linear algebra (matrices, etc.), one semester of statistics or probability, and one or two semesters of discrete math. It's easy to end up with a math minor on your way to a CS degree, and I recommend getting one if you are reasonably good at math. The good thing about this selection of math subjects is that they are all in different areas and are consequently to some degree "introductory" or lower division. The trick at this level for doing well in math classes is simply to put in the time to do all the homework, attend all the lectures, and prepare for tests by doing every problem (even the ones not assigned as homework) from the text book sections covered in