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From: ed@nsx.Berkeley.EDU (Ed Devinney)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.programmer
Subject: Re: We need a student developer program
Message-ID: <1991Apr22.134730.2903@visix.com>
Date: 22 Apr 91 13:47:30 GMT
Article-I.D.: visix.1991Apr22.134730.2903
References: <FRANCIS.91Apr18193322@arthur.zaphod.uchicago.edu> <1612@babcock.cerc.wvu.wvnet.edu>
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In article <1612@babcock.cerc.wvu.wvnet.edu>, vrm@babcock.cerc.wvu.wvnet.edu (Vasile R. Montan) writes:
|> Maybe not at the moment.  But it is in Apple's long-term interest to
|> have as many able Mac programmers as possible.  A programmer in school
|> today is a programmer in the professional world two or three years
|> down the road.

There has been de facto Apple support of Student Developer programs through
the early efforts of the Apple University Consortium, which pushed universities
to develop courseware for the Mac.  These programs worked pretty well (at least
for me!) at bootstrapping Mac programmers, but the costs are pretty high.
Administration, equipment, and planning all have to be full-time jobs, and
learning the Toolbox is a full-time job itself.  At Drexel University's Software
Development Group, we were able to do well because the co-op program let us work 
full-time 1/2 the year, and then part-time during school, after we were up to
speed.

But even with 6-month full-time stints, it was very hard to get lots of good work
done, and I think that the rate of return on investment on the part of the school
was too low.

How about students forming independent groups and learning from each other?
Pool your knowledge, pool your resources, and find some faculty members with
some grant money who need something done.  It's not that tough.

ed

-- 
ed devinney						ed@visix.com
Visix Software Inc., Reston, VA				...!uunet!visix!ed

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