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I don’t know how to be the best programmer in the world. But we can learn from the greatest programmers of all time. This series of articles will share with you Dennis Ritchie, the creator of C and a key developer of the Unix operating system. Experience and advice from Linus Torvalds, inventor of the Linux kernel.

UNIX is basically a simple operating system, but you have to be a genius to understand simplicity –Dennis Ritchie
A few days before earning his degree in computer programming, Dennis Ritchie was offered a job at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Computer LABS weren’t as picky as they are now, and almost welcomed anyone with the patience to help them work on room-sized computers.

The creation of UNIX and C — two of the most widely used technologies in the history of computing — was a big deal for people who were initially outsiders in the industry. Something very important.

Here are some of Dennis Ritchie’s accomplishments:

1. Dennis Ritchie created THE C language and co-created the UNIX operating system with his friend Ken Thompson.

2. In 1983, he received the Turing Award from the ACM.

3. In 1990, Ritchie and Thompson were both awarded the IEEE Richard W. Hamming Medal by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

4. In 1997, he became a member of the Computer History Museum

He received the National Medal of Technology from President Clinton in 1999


So how did he achieve all this? More importantly, how did Dennis Ritchie learn to write software?

Dennis Ritchie — known as the “father of the C programming language” — is known as a thoughtful, kind, humble man — and a complete geek!

But he’s not a geek.

Richie was born in New York and grew up in Garden City, New Jersey. He had a stable childhood and did well academically.

He continued his studies at Harvard University, where he studied science and earned his BACHELOR’s degree in physics.

So when did computers enter Ritchie’s life?

Point 1: If you want to be good at writing great software, you need to be curious.

I’m not smart or particularly talented. I’m just very, very curious. – Einstein

Curiosity fuels the thirst for knowledge. Knowledge rules the world.

As a student, Rich somehow attended a lecture on UNIVAC.

The UNIVAC I (Universal Automatic Computer I) was the first commercial computer produced in the United States.

Here’s what it looks like:

Seriously, what kind of curiosity makes someone sit down and actually enjoy a lecture on how UNIVAC works?

Obviously, this is a great programmer.

After that encounter, Ritchie continued to study how computers work.

Curiosity killed the cat. We all know that, but you’re not a cat.

Point 2: Build more projects and learn more about the business.

Instead of focusing on specific projects, I wanted to be a person with a wealth of experience and ideas. So I started working on various projects to learn about my career. – Dennis Ritchie

Let the creation of many projects be the product of your curiosity. Turn curiosity into building different projects – like Ritchie, this will help you understand your profession.

Point 3: Surround yourself with people you think are more professional and experienced.

The most obvious reason why you should do this is that you will learn much faster and be less satisfied with your current knowledge.

This is another thing Dennis Ritchie is said to do well.

If you can’t get close to people who you think are better and more experienced, then the Internet is your friend.

Follow them on the channel where you feel comfortable. Read their blog posts. Watch their YouTube video. Listen to their podcast.

Stay with “them.”

Point 4: Solve the problem.

“It’s not really fun programming. But this is what you can get with the most important results. “- Dennis Ritchie

Dennis Ritchie lives in an age when computers fill rooms. But Ritchie knew that minicomputers were being developed and that they didn’t have an easy-to-use operating system, so he set out to build one.

This is Ritchie’s view of universal programming, as it relates to achievable goals. The problem with the operating system was solved, with far-reaching consequences for future generations.

If a problem bothers you, don’t ignore it. If you think it’s being ignored by many people, please address it.

Be curious. Study concepts. Ask for help.

You shouldn’t look back until you’ve solved the problem.

You do it when it’s important enough, even if it’s a long shot.

Here are some examples:

Electron JS, which brings Javascript to life for building desktop applications, because the Github team wants to use Web technology to build a hackable editor.

2. Redux is a predictable state container for Javascript applications, built by Dan Abramov because he wanted to create a state management library with minimal apis but fully predictable behavior — that’s the way he says it.

3. Quincy Larson and several others built the Freecodecamp platform to solve the problem of teaching Web technologies in the open source community.

They see a problem and move on to solve it.

Key takeaways from Dennis Ritchie, the father of C

1. Be curious, and keep burning the flame of knowledge. We will never know everything.

2. Understand the fundamentals. Mastering the basics is the true master of skills.

3. Solve problems. If you think something could have been done differently and should have been done, do it. You’ll be able to live faster and better.

4. Create lots of different projects.

Surround yourself with people who have more expertise, experience, and ideas. It’s priceless and you can’t trade it for anything else.