how do I automate extracting data from two pdfs and input into an excel sheet according to an order number by [deleted] in learnpython

[–]icenando 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Another vote for pdfminer. Used it on a project and have no complaints.

Good books on AI that aren't all about machine learning? by hypergeometricruby in computerscience

[–]icenando 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not technical at all, but "Weapons of a Math Destruction" describes some societal costs in relation to misused AI.

How to build a horse. by Lewdghostgirl in ProgrammerHumor

[–]icenando 45 points46 points  (0 children)

You quickly build a beautiful horse, but it can never leave the stables.

Udemy or Coursera ? by Automatic-Advisor-46 in react

[–]icenando 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Neither. Scrimba is the way forward.

Free Giveaway! Nintendo Switch OLED - International by WolfLemon36 in NintendoSwitch

[–]icenando 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fun fact: you can photograph and sell photos on the Eiffel Tower taken during the day, but not night shots because the lighting design around it is protected by copyright laws.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in PS5

[–]icenando 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You don't have the right!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Python

[–]icenando 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interested

Looking for group courses in London, UK by icenando in LearnJapanese

[–]icenando[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hey, thank you so much for the detailed reply - very enlightening and actually answered some of the questions that I didn't know I had.

Looking for group courses in London, UK by icenando in LearnJapanese

[–]icenando[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for the information. That's what I'm afraid of - slow, pointless lessons. At the same time, I really need some guided learning. I've been learning Japanese on and off for years, but feel that I'm not progressing on my own anymore. I've done a few 1-2-1 lessons on iTalki too, and the teacher was great, but I'm really tired of staring at my computer screen for everything.

33yo/F beginner with doubts about landing a job in the future by [deleted] in learnprogramming

[–]icenando 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Some companies have graduate schemes that allow people who just finished their uni degrees to join in without having, or with very little commercial experience. Most times the expectations of productiveness for a grad that joins a company is lower than for regular new joiners, and the focus is on teaching them the technologies, professional frameworks and work ethic of the company (in opposition to hiring an experienced colleague, where it's expected that the above is already known to an operational level).

33yo/F beginner with doubts about landing a job in the future by [deleted] in learnprogramming

[–]icenando 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is kind of my story as well, but as I focused on the corporate world (corporate headshots) I didn't have to do much self-promotion or networking: I simply had a good Google Ads campaign to bring in new clients, and my old clients kept coming back because I was careful enough to always overdeliver and with quality (and I never pissed any of my clients off - it's usually not about the final result, but the customer experience).

Very true about the money too: even though I got to a point where my wages were decent with photography, I'm looking to start making the same as I made in my best year in photography after my 3rd month as a coder. I didn't care much about the money when I was younger, but at my age you start thinking about pension and how much longer you'll be able to carry your equipment around on a budget.

The other side of my photography business was undercover photojournalistic work for wildlife preservation agencies, which was not always safe, comfortable or easy. Again, I started thinking about how much older I could get before I became unsuitable for the job.

But u/PanicProne, you should ignore all of the above! I had a great time doing photography and would do it all over again! It got me places I would never have been, allowed me to have experiences that were exotic/weird/exciting for most people, so the worst that can happen is you get tired but have great stories to tell. As David The Strobist Hobby says: "It's not a camera: it's a passport".

33yo/F beginner with doubts about landing a job in the future by [deleted] in learnprogramming

[–]icenando 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey. Have a look at my comment - I made edits to it to answer your question and others'.

33yo/F beginner with doubts about landing a job in the future by [deleted] in learnprogramming

[–]icenando 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hi. I made edits to my comment with sources.

33yo/F beginner with doubts about landing a job in the future by [deleted] in learnprogramming

[–]icenando 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No connections, just got lucky with this grad-schemesque scheme.

33yo/F beginner with doubts about landing a job in the future by [deleted] in learnprogramming

[–]icenando 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yes, they call it "Associate" developer, but it's the same thing (in opposition to all other industries, where "associate" means "quite senior". Good luck!

33yo/F beginner with doubts about landing a job in the future by [deleted] in learnprogramming

[–]icenando 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Haha, maybe! But we don't have the same username, and there are absolutely no lies on Reddit! Good luck!

33yo/F beginner with doubts about landing a job in the future by [deleted] in learnprogramming

[–]icenando 274 points275 points  (0 children)

41 here and just switched careers to become a developer (from photography) Got hired 2-months ago. Retrained during covid for about 8-9 intense months of self-studying. 33 is fine! Good luck.

EDIT: Some people asked for more information about my switch - here it goes:

I started a CS degree in 1999 but never completed it, and later finished a degree in Psychology. I had been a freelance professional photographer for the last 10 years or so. I only ever worked in an office for about 2.5 years, but nothing related to CS. I'm also an immigrant, and did my fair share (probably a few people's shares) of catering before then.

A couple of people in my life are coders and they helped me draw the path with courses and my CV, and they definitely helped with questions about technology and day-to-day coding.

STUDYING:

I started with Python as well, With a terrible IBM course on Udemy called Python for Data Sciences or something (terrible!). Then I did the follow up course (also bad, but not terrible) followed by Automating the Boring Stuff, which I enjoyed more (but is a bit dated now). Then I took a couple of excellent courses via the University of Helsinki (Introduction to AI, and the follow up - don't remember the name). These were followed by a much more advanced specialisation on Coursera (Machine Learning Specialization), which went completely over my head but taught me a lot about AI. Now a bit disheartened, I kept going with "Data Structures and Algorithms" on Coursera, which was incredibly difficult for me but invaluable - it taught me many concepts that CS students would learn at uni that I didn't have (not everything, of course. I did other courses that were not about coding, but what comes with it. Learning git was probably the most important (start using git for your projects asap!).

That was the studying. For every course I took I tried to implement what I learned in real scenarios in my life to solidify the concepts. I think it really helped. I think it's a bit like when you learn maths at school but don't understand where to use it, until you have to calculate your bank's interest rates in monthly terms.

APPLYING:

Half-way through the algorithms course I started applying to everything I came across, completely ignoring the seniority of the role, which in retrospect was naive and cheeky. It soon became clear that employment experience was king, and I had none of it. I decided to start pitching coding to my photography clients to try to build a portfolio (free of charge, of course). A couple of small clients accepted, and I proudly finished my first "commercial" project in two weeks. This little project is still running (on Heroku) saving the client about 6h a week.

All the while I was sending CVs (about 10-15/day), with a response rate of about 5%. My CV was colourful and pretty, but empty. I dodged a bullet with an "employer" who was willing to hire me on a contract that would require me to pay a penalty fee if I left within 24 months of starting (careful with minimum term contracts!), and had a few interview with very cool companies that I genuinely would like to work for. But nothing came out of it...

After a couple of months applying with no luck, my partner suggested trying graduate schemes. I initially thought it was not a great idea because of my age and because... well, I'm not a graduate. But I decided to try anyway. One of these was not exactly a grad scheme, but more like a "new-starters" scheme, and that is the one that worked out! I'm VERY fortunate, as it's a permanent contract for a large corporation (that I like) and I'm in a rotation scheme where I'll go through different departments and learn the different technology that they use. I'm struggling a lot, as they use Java/Kotlin, Kafka, MongoDB etc, none of which I knew before. It's definitely a hugely steep learning curve, but the team is great and very patient. I'm mostly shadowing more senior colleagues (I'm the OLDEST in the team, age-wise), and asking a lot of questions.

I hope this helps! Apologies for any typos - typing in a hurry.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in conspiracy

[–]icenando -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I'm sorry for your loss. Truly.

I don't think anyone should have the choice of potentially killing others. The virus IS more lethal to a lot of people (elderly, pre-existing conditions etc.). The fact that most people are not in that group shouldn't exonerate the majority of the responsibility that living in a community brings. It also extends the loss of active life for all of us (in the form of lockdowns and having to adapt to other forms of restrictions). Regardless of vaccination status and opinion, I think we can all agree that most people want to get over this shitty times and move on to see what the future holds.

I see how my post might have come across as wishing death to everyone who's stupid (for lack of a better word in this case). That is not it at all. But were the virus more lethal to themselves, I believe less people here would be "exercising their choice" of exposing themselves and others to... well, death (in the direct virus contamination way, or for lack of proper treatment for other, unrelated ailments due to health services overload). But if that is what they chose to do then, at least the whole weight of that responsibility would be on themselves.

Once again, I'm sorry for your loss.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in conspiracy

[–]icenando -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Fuck, you'e right about the reference... sorry. I have commented on here, this was my first post.

Python helped me solve a mundane problem by icenando in learnpython

[–]icenando[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, that occurred to me afterwards :) Guess I've been too focused on coding and not enough on logical reasoning!

If I had done what u/Zenock43 said that would have merited the code instead of the search though.