Mechanical Engineer: VB & Oracle in School - Career Impact?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the relevance of programming languages, particularly C, for mechanical engineering students. Participants explore the impact of their programming background on future career prospects and the importance of various software tools in the field.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses concern about the potential impact of not knowing C on their career as a mechanical engineer.
  • Another participant suggests that C is not commonly used in mechanical engineering, highlighting that simulation software and scripting languages like Perl or Tcl are more relevant.
  • A participant confirms the popularity of MATLAB in mechanical engineering and seeks advice on which software or programming language to focus on for future career benefits.
  • Some participants mention their own experiences using C/C++ in other engineering fields, such as electrical engineering and astrophysics, but acknowledge that its application in mechanical engineering may be limited.
  • There is a discussion about the ease of learning VB compared to C, with one participant reflecting on their dislike for C due to its complexity relative to VB.
  • A later reply notes that many programming languages share similarities with C, suggesting that learning C could provide foundational skills beneficial for other languages.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on whether learning C is essential for mechanical engineers. There are multiple viewpoints on the relevance of C compared to other programming languages and software tools.

Contextual Notes

Participants express varying levels of experience with programming languages and software, which may influence their perspectives on the necessity of learning C. The discussion reflects personal preferences and experiences rather than a definitive stance on programming requirements in mechanical engineering.

ank_gl
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I ll graduate next year from college as a mechanical engineer. I had VB & oracle in school, I simply hated C, will it affect my career in anyway?? Should I study C now itself, or i can leave it??
 
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I wouldn't think you would use much C as an ME. I use it a lot for writing hardware tests and such in my EE work, but I don't think I've ever seen an ME code in C. More likely you'll be using simulation software, and maybe scripting some stuff in Perl or Tcl, or writing your own simulations in Matlab.
 


berkeman said:
or writing your own simulations in Matlab.

thats right!
 


So MATLAB is more popular than maple or other software in ME? I am going to graduate in ME also. I want to learn softwares but I just want to concentrate in a software/programming language that will help me in future. Any suggestion?
 


I use c/c++ (ROOT) for particles physics (cosmic ray) research. My buddy uses C/C++ for EE work. I also am using BASIC (Basic Stamp) for data collection in astrophysics research.

I can't think of too much you would use c for in ME but I have no experience with it. That said though, hating c is not going to get you anywhere. What about it did you not like. It is certainly a good skill to possess; Well, any programing experience is worthwhile really.

I think it comes down to personal opinion for matlab, maple, mathematica, octave, etc.. you tend to use and learn to like what ever program you have to use. I've used maple and mathematica for various different physics and math classes.
 


mgiddy911 said:
That said though, hating c is not going to get you anywhere. What about it did you not like. It is certainly a good skill to possess; Well, any programing experience is worthwhile really.

Yes right, hating it won't get me anywhere. that is exactly why I asked if I should learn it or not?
A part of the hate comes from the fact that I first learned VB, & obviously since it is toooooo easy, I didn't feel like using C. But having said that, I do know the basics very well(I topped my school), so I was wondering should I learn or it leave it??(considering the fact, I still have 1 more year in college)

I used a bit of Mat lab, I can write functions & some stuff, that's pretty much all of it.
 


A lot of languages are based on or are similar to C.
 

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