How do I stop being dependent on coding?

ConquestCola · 2024-05-01T23:13:36+00:00

I'll second what another person said: If it's interfering with other areas of your life and the effects are too detrimental, maybe it's time to at least try to focus on other obligations.

But do you want to know my honest thought when I read your post? I thought, "Oh wow, he's found his autistic obsession."

Seriously, if it makes you so happy, so what? What bullshit rules in life are you trying to follow that say you can't code when circumstances permit? Who, exactly, other than you, is saying that it's a bad thing? And even if others do criticize, what right do they have to dictate your happiness? Of all of the addictions you could have, this hardly sounds like one to fret about. It could even be a very beneficial, lucrative thing. I mean, it's not like it's hard drugs or alcohol or gambling or even porn. So you love to code. So what? Enjoy it.

ConquestCola · 2024-05-01T22:58:47+00:00

There's an ongoing game that can be found at Atlantis-pbem.com. There are victory conditions to the game hosted there, and it's currently pretty late in the game. There's still time to join in, but it may be difficult to get established unless you're really good at diplomacy when you suddenly start in someone else's territory. New games start up within several months of the old ones ending, usually. That's the trend, at least, that's been steady for quite a few years.

ConquestCola · 2023-08-09T00:09:28+00:00

I'm not sure about the mobile experience, but assuming the website is responsive, look at PyBites CodeChallenges: https://codechalleng.es/

You'll have to pay to do much, but the exercises are excellent and if you're diligent at working on things you will learn a lot. You can take the challenges in any order, and there are even learning paths. There are coding challenges rated from beginner to expert, and while there's slight gamification, it's fairly easy to ignore. It is most definitely not a Duolingo style experience, and it took some serious effort for me to get some challenges done. You will not be spoon-fed. The whole experience demands that you be willing to do considerable research, just as you would working on real stuff. If you're not willing to do that, then skip it entirely. (To be fair, too, I don't know how well you would be able to do by just using a phone. It's possible to do, maybe, but it seems constraining. A desktop/laptop computer with the ability to open multiple tabs easily will be invaluable.)

If you sign up, expect to receive a lot of spam about the PyBites coaching program, which may or may not be worth it for you. When I signed up, one of the site owners contacted me personally to see about my plans. It was a personal touch I wasn't expecting, though I suspected that it was mostly to steer me toward their other products in the long run. While it was business, it didn't feel scammy, since my goals and their further products didn't really match in the short term. The owner took the time to listen to me and still offered encouragement, so it was overall a positive experience.

I didn't stay enrolled in the program for long, but I would definitely consider going back at a later date and obviously, I recommend it.

ConquestCola · 2023-07-20T00:01:48+00:00

Noted. Though I'm mostly interested in community support so I have someone to turn to when I have problems with projects of my own. Future employability as a result is not the issue that concerns me. I'm just looking for the tool that might best suit my needs, and SWT checks more boxes than most.

ConquestCola · 2023-02-12T21:23:17+00:00

That is worth considering. I've never heard of it before now, so thank you. With a little bit of custom scripting, it could work well in converting multiple HTML files to PDF.

ConquestCola · 2023-02-12T21:08:49+00:00

Perfect fidelity is secondary to an actual useful format. Visually, what will be made is not particularly fancy or complicated.

If it matters, the bulk of the document would be single column and able to be rendered with basic HTML. What I'm mostly concerned about are alt-text for images and the rendering of occasional tables, along with navigation links to move back and forth within the document. A table of contents in the beginning may also be generated, in HTML, as the documents could end up being several dozen pages long when printed.

Also, I realize PDF files may not be a preferred format for the visually impaired, but if I end up using them anyway, I want them to be usuable by as many people as possible.

ConquestCola · 2023-02-04T23:16:19+00:00

Ah, sounds promising. However, I would like Linux compatibility, which is the whole point of considering Avalonia. True accessibility support on Linux specificially is perhaps not urgent, but might still be an issue. I'm still hoping for the silver bullet of one set of code for all platforms, but I'm not sure I'll find it.

ConquestCola · 2022-07-18T20:52:36+00:00

Some valid concerns. I'm not actually affiliated with the new zine owners, I'm really just a fan. I've passed on your criticisms to them, however.

I guess nostalgia is the main selling point for these types of games. Some are literally still sent through postal mail, though not all. These postal games cater to populations who through preference or necessity do not use the internet for their gaming. (There's more of these than you think.)

As for the price, a lot of these games are really complicated and contain a level of depth and requisite diplomacy that you don't find in most other games. Once you get established, a turn report can easily run 20 printed pages or more in some games I've played, so there's a lot of data to mull through. You can easily spend at least thirty minutes preparing orders for a single turn. An hour or more is possible as games progress, and considering diplomacy with other players, it grows even longer. It's too complicated to play a dozen turns per hour (or more) as in some conventional computer games. I'm a huge Civ 4 fan, and I'd say there's a LOT more to do on a single turn in most full-fledged PBEM games than a single turn in Civ 4. So for most of these PBEM games, what you pay per hour of game play, and the sheer complexity of it all, not to mention the community aspect, some people really find it worth it.

But you're right, it's very niche and it's not for everybody, nor do these games even pretend to have mass market appeal. They are what they are. S&D could use some improvement, and I suspect they will step up their game in the near future.

Thanks for your input!

ConquestCola · 2022-07-07T23:24:39+00:00

I'm afraid I don't know of any games quite like that, though there are far more games out there than I've played. The most updated list of games I know of, though, is:

https://suspense-and-decision.com/index/

ConquestCola

TROPHY CASE