[erlang-questions] Ways to get started

[Banibrata Dutta]

On Mon, Jul 11, 2011 at 11:11 PM, <pmacgown@REDACTED> wrote:

> The biggest problem that I am running into is that my Unix sys admin
> experience 10+ years ago doesn't help much.  Using Git, Rebar, and even make
> is a steep hill for me to travel.  I've been through numerous tutorials and
> documentation and there is this massive body of knowledge that I just don't
> have, or these tutorials just assume you know.
>
>
>
> I get Erlang. That's the easy part.  It's just the underlying development
> structure and environment that gets in my way.
>
> Is there a real 101 that can give me a leg up?  Really basic questions
> like:
>
>
>
> How do I get Erlang from github?  Where do I put it once I get it?  How
> does rebar fit into this picture?  What does a development cycle look like
> using these tools?
>
>
Peter,

What you describe, I think, is quite typical of people who are picking up a
new language, and if they've not been programming very actively, lately. I
am in that stage, and have gone thru similar struggles. However, in the end,
one need to master each of those tools, to learn Erlang. In fact, I think it
is pointless to master rebar and git, if you are just a beginner. What might
suffice (to tide over the curve), is to know a very small handful of tool
command vocabulary. For example --

1) cloning a git repository
2) setting up a rebar project
3) compiling/building project with rebar

rest can wait. I've fallen into the Emacs honey pot (every one, in every
video turtorial/presentation on Erlang, seems to be using Emacs), and
struggled to learn just enough, although, now I realize that with Erlide
(Emace based) or even with vi + command-line bash aliases, I am as
productive.

>
>
> Really Really basic stuff.
>
>
>
> --Peter
>
> ------------------------------
>
> *From: *"Garrett Smith" <g@REDACTED>
> *To: *"Isaac Sanders" <isaacbfsanders@REDACTED>
> *Cc: *erlang-questions@REDACTED
> *Sent: *Monday, July 11, 2011 12:59:09 PM
> *Subject: *Re: [erlang-questions] Ways to get started
>
>
> On Sat, Jul 9, 2011 at 7:18 AM, Isaac Sanders <isaacbfsanders@REDACTED>
> wrote:
> > Hello all! I am a rubyist looking for more information on erlang, and I
> was
> > hoping to find some resources... If you would be so kind as to let me
> know
> > any that have helped you.
>
> In addition to the books and the online resources mentioned...
>
> I find it helps to pick a project that you'd be comfortable solving in
> another language, then tackle it in Erlang. Solve mini problems as you
> go. Ask questions here.
>
> I find http://erldocs.com/ helpful as a reference.
>
> Garrett
>
> P.S. Come to think of it, I don't know if
> http://www.erlang.org/doc.html was mentioned. None of the books are a
> substitute for that.
>
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