Programming: 5 Pillars of Learning Programming, New Releases of Rust and Git

• 5 Pillars of Learning Programming

  Learning how to program is hard. I often find that university courses and boot camps miss important aspects of programming and take poor approaches to teaching rookies. I want to share the 5 basic pillars I believe a successful programming course should build upon. As always, I am addressing the context of mainstream web applications. A rookie’s goal is to master the fundamentals of programming and to understand the importance of libraries and frameworks. Advanced topics such as the cloud, operations in general, or build tools should not be part of the curriculum. I am also skeptical when it comes to Design Patterns. They presume experience that beginners never have.

• The Rust Programming Language Blog: Announcing Rust 1.27

  The Rust team is happy to announce a new version of Rust, 1.27.0. Rust is a systems programming language focused on safety, speed, and concurrency.

• Rust 1.27 Released With SIMD Improvements

  Most notable to Rust 1.27 is SIMD support via the std::arch module to make use of SIMD (Single Instruction, Multiple Data) instructions directly. Up to now Rust could already make use of LLVM's auto-vectorization support, but this lets Rust developers write SIMD instructions on their own and to allow for the proper Rust code to be executed based upon the CPU at run-time.

• Git 2.18 Released With Initial Version Of Its New Wire Protocol

  Version 2.18 of the Git distributed revision control system is now available. Arguably most notable about Git 2.18 is the introduction of its new wire protocol "protocol_v2" that is designed to offer much greater performance. This new protocol is designed to be much faster and is already being used at Google and elsewhere due to the significant performance benefits.

• Git v2.18.0

  The latest feature release Git v2.18.0 is now available at the usual places. It is comprised of 903 non-merge commits since v2.17.0, contributed by 80 people, 24 of which are new faces.

Linux Foundation: Heather Kirksey and the New LF Report

• Heather Kirksey on Integrating Networking and Cloud Native

  As highlighted in the recent Open Source Jobs Report, cloud and networking skills are in high demand. And, if you want to hear about the latest networking developments, there is no one better to talk with than Heather Kirksey, VP, Community and Ecosystem Development, Networking at The Linux Foundation. Kirksey was the Director of OPNFV before the recent consolidation of several networking-related projects under the new LF Networking umbrella, and I spoke with her to learn more about LF Networking (LFN) and how the initiative is working closely with cloud native technologies. Kirksey explained the reasoning behind the move and expansion of her role. “At OPNFV, we were focused on integration and end-to-end testing across the LFN projects. We had interaction with all of those communities. At the same time, we were separate legal entities, and things like that created more barriers to collaboration. Now, it’s easy to look at them more strategically as a portfolio to facilitate member engagement and deliver solutions to service providers.”

• Linux Skills Most Wanted: Open Source Jobs Report

  The 2018 Open Source Technology Jobs Report shows rapid growth in the demand for open source technical talent, with Linux skills a must-have requirement for entry-level positions. The seventh annual report from The Linux Foundation and Dice, released Wednesday, identifies Linux coding as the most sought-after open source skill. Linux-based container technology is a close second. The report provides an overview of open source career trends, factors motivating professionals in the industry, and ways employers attract and retain qualified talent. As with the last two open source jobs reports, the focus this year is on all aspects of open source software and is not limited to Linux.

Games: Steam Summer Sale, GNU/Linux Version of Turok, GNU FreeDink

• Steam Summer Sale is up, free game from Humble Store & Fanatical sale too

  There's quite a lot of sales and stuff going on right now, so I'm going to cram some into one article to give you an extra scoop with sprinkles and all. Firstly, head on over to Humble Store to grab a free copy of Shadowrun Returns Deluxe. Note: You do need to be subscribed to their newsletter to get it and it's only going on for 48 hours.

• The Linux version of Turok has left beta, available to everyone

  Turok, the revamp of the 1997 shooter arrived in Beta for Linux back in May and now it's officially out.

• GNU FreeDink - One Of The Few Fully Free Software Games - Now Runs On The Web

  When it comes to obscure projects under the official GNU Project umbrella, GNU FreeDink is one of them as being a free software game whose lineage traces back to the Dink Smallwood title from the late 90's. Nearly twenty years after the game's original release, the latest GNU FreeDink release is now available that allows it to be played within web-browsers. GNU FreeDink is the GNU maintained version of the Dink Smallwood game based upon its source release and then with any and all proprietary assets (like sounds) replaced to make it completely free software, with many otherwise "open-source" games still relying upon non-libre licensed in-game assets.

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