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Hackers & Painters: Big Ideas from the Computer Age
"The computer world is like an intellectual Wild West, in which you can shoot anyone you wish with your ideas, if you're willing to risk the consequences. " --from Hackers & Painters: Big Ideas from the Computer Age, by Paul Graham We are living in the computer age, in a world increasingly designed and engineered by computer programmers and software designers, by...more
Hardcover, 272 pages
Published
May 25th 2004
by O'Reilly Media
(first published May 2004)
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Meh. This started out promising. While it may provide inspirational fodder for young, technological entrepreneurs, everyone else might soon find the tone obnoxious and constant extrapolation tedious.
Graham is at his best when he sticks to what he knows: programming and business technology. As such, the best chapter is "programming languages explained." This chapter held the most accessible explanation on language analytic that I've ever come across, and is a pleasure to...more
Graham is at his best when he sticks to what he knows: programming and business technology. As such, the best chapter is "programming languages explained." This chapter held the most accessible explanation on language analytic that I've ever come across, and is a pleasure to...more
Paul Graham ('pg') is the closest thing Silicon Valley has to a patriarchal, Godfather-like figure. He's revered within the startup tech community both for his online essays and for starting Y Combinator.
Hackers and Painters is essentially an edited collection of essays posted to his online blog. His writings are fantastic: if you consider yourself a hacker, a tinkerer, or any sort of creative type that relies on fiddling with computers to practice your craft, you owe it to yourself ...more
Hackers and Painters is essentially an edited collection of essays posted to his online blog. His writings are fantastic: if you consider yourself a hacker, a tinkerer, or any sort of creative type that relies on fiddling with computers to practice your craft, you owe it to yourself ...more
I really enjoy Paul Graham's writings. I think that everything in this book may be available on Graham's blog, but it's still worth checking out. The book is really a series of essays in disguise but frankly that makes it much better than many drawn out books that would have been better as essay. Graham writes in a direct manner that is very engaging. I recommend the following essay in particular:
3) What You Can't Say - In this essay Graham defines a procedure for identifying beliefs ...more
3) What You Can't Say - In this essay Graham defines a procedure for identifying beliefs ...more
I had serious problems with this book. So Paul Graham is a successful Lisp hacker who made a lot of money from his start-up. Good for him. To be sure, this earns him some credibility in discussing languages and start-ups. Unfortunately, he takes it upon himself to extrapolate from this single data point to universal laws of what makes you successful. Moreover, he seems to think that his success as a geek entrepreneur somehow lends validity to whatever unsubstantiated thoughts, feelings and preju...more
What I expected going in was interested parallels on the process of creating software versus other creative arts, and what Graham had learned across multiple disciplines. That I can dig.
What I got is a string of thinly justified essays that are lionising The Uber1337 Hacker as a misunderstood maverick agent for changing that is only being kept back by The Man.
Graham is a smart man - far smarter than me, and he's written a lot more software. But the tone of the book is gra...more
What I got is a string of thinly justified essays that are lionising The Uber1337 Hacker as a misunderstood maverick agent for changing that is only being kept back by The Man.
Graham is a smart man - far smarter than me, and he's written a lot more software. But the tone of the book is gra...more
This is a collection of essays, centred around technology by an erudite polymath. Anyone who has studied both programming and painting immeadiately gets my interest, I have dabbled in both these myself. The initial drawcard for me was the painters and hackers essay, comparing and contrasting great art with programming Paul Graham prefers the term 'hacker'. This is true delight to read and the painters and hackers essay is just the start. Here's an overview to give a flavour of it:
...more
...more
I first heard of Paul Graham a few years ago and became very interested in him once I learned more about his dual nature as an artist and a programmer, something that I have found to be exceeding rare in the tech industry, I was starting to think I was one of the only people who liked to paint as well as program. His opinions and ideas expressed in this collection of essays resonated strongly with me and have reinforced my resolve to stick with programming rather that bail out to to a manageria...more
There is another gold rush in Silicon valley and Graham has some controversial ideas and some undeniable nuggets of wisdom in this book for any brave soul looking to make it big.
As a fan of LISP, he claims LISP is the most powerful language out there. As an entrepreneur who has "made it" , he extols the virtues of hard work and flexibility. He lays out the characteristics that make startups and founders fail or succeed and relates it back to his own story.
A great read for an...more
As a fan of LISP, he claims LISP is the most powerful language out there. As an entrepreneur who has "made it" , he extols the virtues of hard work and flexibility. He lays out the characteristics that make startups and founders fail or succeed and relates it back to his own story.
A great read for an...more
I listened to this podcast called "The Changelog" for a number of month and the hosts always asked guests who their programming hero is. Up until the last month I didn't know if I would be able to answer that question if asked. I guess I would have said something generic like: "Linus Torvalds", or "Dennis Ritchie". Although both of those persons are brilliant I can say without a doubt that Paul Graham is my programming hero. (Oh yeah... the book is a fantastic r...more
A fun-to-read mix of insight and ideology, Graham is someone we can learn from no matter which side of the box he's thinking on. His essay on nerds ("Why Nerds are Unpopular") is still a favorite, even while his essay on disparity of wealth ("Mind the Gap") is among the most unreflective apologies for anarcho-capitalism I've ever read.
I was, at least, inspired enough while reading Graham to put a few more thoughts together; those interested can find them here.
I was, at least, inspired enough while reading Graham to put a few more thoughts together; those interested can find them here.
A great read for all programmers and anyone interested in software. I don't agree with everything in the book, bit there are some terrific insights here. Some of my favorite quotes:
A programming language is for thinking of programs, not for expressing programs you've already thought of. pg 22
Programmers were seen as technicians who translated the visions (if that is the word) of product managers into code. pg 23
Software has to be designed by hackers who understand d...more
A programming language is for thinking of programs, not for expressing programs you've already thought of. pg 22
Programmers were seen as technicians who translated the visions (if that is the word) of product managers into code. pg 23
Software has to be designed by hackers who understand d...more
The following quotes are taken from Hackers & Painters, by Paul Graham. Page numbers are provided from the paperback published by O'Reilly in 2010, ISBN: 978-1-449-38955-0.
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Alberti, arguably the archetype of the Renaissance Man, writes that "no art, however minor, demands less than total dedication if you want to excel in it." 3
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In hacking, like painting, work comes in cycles. Sometimes you get excited about a new project and you want...more
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Alberti, arguably the archetype of the Renaissance Man, writes that "no art, however minor, demands less than total dedication if you want to excel in it." 3
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In hacking, like painting, work comes in cycles. Sometimes you get excited about a new project and you want...more
In the interest of full disclosure, I read this entire book on my phone, and that means I read the whole thing in tiny bites: waiting in line at the grocery store, during the dead times before meetings, and so forth. Because of this it took me 6 months to read it and I'm not entirely sure I got all I could out of it.
It's a book of essays, and the author was one of the founders of Viaweb, which was eventually purchased by Yahoo and become Yahoo Shops, or Yahoo Store, or whatever the se...more
It's a book of essays, and the author was one of the founders of Viaweb, which was eventually purchased by Yahoo and become Yahoo Shops, or Yahoo Store, or whatever the se...more
Not an investment book per se, but a must-read for any aspiring entrepreneur or the investor who wants to know what it takes to run a successful business. Hackers & Painters is a collection of essays written by Paul Graham - a programmer and venture capitalist who was one of the first to successfully construct a business that ran entirely in “the cloud” of cyberspace. To be honest, Hackers & Painters is more like two books in one - the last half deals with spam filtering and computer programming...more
Paul Graham is a fiercely intelligent human being and Hackers and Painters is a fantastic set of essays from the most astute author of our time. What really strikes you about PG's writing is not the tone or the atmosphere or anything else that we look for in other novels, it's the fact that everything he writes is right, and as such, the back cover is absolutely correct: the "Why are Nerds Unpopular?" essay is worth the price of admission alone.
This is a collection of essays from Paul Graham. I believe you can read most, if not all, of these essays on his website for free. You may want to give that a try first. I enjoyed this book very much, only a couple of 'chapters' seemed to drag on a bit or didn't quite grab my interest. If you're a programmer or part of geek/nerd culture you're probably going to enjoy the majority of this book.
I really love Paul Graham's essays, they're like being in the company of a wise older uncle whose done it all. Lots of great advice about programming, art, design, and start ups. It's a bit of an old book though, published in 2004 so it's a bit funny to read about his (very accurate) predictions about the future of the internet and our technology.
I really enjoy Graham's witty and insightful writing style. This is a collection of his essays, many of which are available on his site. They cover a wide variety of topics: why programmers do what they do, the roles of various languages and the future of programming, the creative process and its role in creation of new ways we think and work.
This book reminded me a lot of The Cathedral and the Bazaar insofar as it is mostly a collection of essays about computer culture. Some I really identified with, some felt out of date, some went over my head or were outside of my interests. Overall a very thought-provoking read.
Series of short essays - some really fascinating - from Paul Graham, who continues to post things well worth reading on his blog. Especially good on what makes startups work (or not) and the mentality behind successfully turning an idea into an actual business.
I didn't enjoy this one very much. The essays seemed too sure of themselves without proper support.
Also, it's my opinion as a programmer that despite the stated aim ("This book is an attempt to explain to the world at large what goes on in the world of computers."), "the world at large" would have trouble following many parts, especially the programming languages discussions.
Also, it's my opinion as a programmer that despite the stated aim ("This book is an attempt to explain to the world at large what goes on in the world of computers."), "the world at large" would have trouble following many parts, especially the programming languages discussions.
It's an interesting book, and when Graham writes about his own experiences -- it's compelling.
When he writes about why Lisp is a superior language -- it's dubious.
When he writes about what a good hacker looks like -- it's suspiciously self-referential.
When he writes about why Lisp is a superior language -- it's dubious.
When he writes about what a good hacker looks like -- it's suspiciously self-referential.
A little boring, far from a page turner, but otherwise entertaining book that let you rethink that nerds are a creative species but that creative people aren't necessarily nerds. Programming goes beyond a profession, it is a devotion.
Hackers and Painters is a collection of Paul Graham's essays, which are all available online. The essays pontificate on a wide range of subjects, among them: business, technology, nerds, art, money, and heresy.
Graham created Viaweb, which was bought by Yahoo and now lives as Yahoo Stores, and has earned enough money to be able to spout off on topics for the rest of his life. Fortunately for us, his ideas are thought-provoking enough for this to be worth a read. All of the essays...more
Graham created Viaweb, which was bought by Yahoo and now lives as Yahoo Stores, and has earned enough money to be able to spout off on topics for the rest of his life. Fortunately for us, his ideas are thought-provoking enough for this to be worth a read. All of the essays...more
The book is a compilation of essays published originally on Paul Graham's website. He is a vocal advocate of lisp and the book is filled with opinionated support for his favorite language revolving around anecdotes from his startup days. Apart from that he presents a few other essays on subjects like how to create wealth and write spam filters. The overarching theme of the book is that hacking revolves not around programming languages and other technicalities but the individual or the hacker who...more
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Often after I read a book I think about what it would be like to meet the author and talk about the book with him or her. I have no desire to meet Paul Graham. He sounds so arrogant and pontificates so much about things he really doesn't know much about that I can't imagine talking to him. I agree with David's review below.
I thought this was a good read. The various essays do make you think regardless of agreement with the author.
As another person who enjoys Lisps (even though I lack a ton of experience with them) I enjoyed Graham's reasons to use the language.
As another person who enjoys Lisps (even though I lack a ton of experience with them) I enjoyed Graham's reasons to use the language.
A geek's opinion on everything from why nerds are unpopular to an analysis on programming languages. Well you may not agree with him completely. It is just his opinion.Nevertheless, a good read
Jin
is currently reading it
One of my friends has this book, so I just read occasionally from him. Only finished 2 chapters. The ideas are very unique and illustrating. It makes me think. and I'm reading it in the woods^^
This book has aged immensely! But even in his time I am not sure it was that groundbreaking (as some reviews claimed). It has some historical value if that is what you are after.
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Paul Graham is an essayist, programmer, and programming language designer. In 1995 he developed with Robert Morris the first web-based application, Viaweb, which was acquired by Yahoo in 1998. In 2002 he described a simple statistical spam filter that inspired a new generation of filters. He's currently working on a new programming language called Arc, a new book on startups, and is one of the par...more
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“There are few sources of energy so powerful as a procrastinating college student.”
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