[GLLUG] Mismatched pair: cobol and me. Guru needed!

[Benjamin Minshall]

Jolyon-

I'm a bit confused.  Are you learning COBOL because you need to for a 
job, course requirement, etc; or is this just a hobby?  Although I 
haven't used or seen it much, COBOL doesn't seem like a very good 
beginner or concept-oriented language.

As far as MSU goes, there really aren't any resources for programming 
help aside from the TA's in intro computer science classes; even then, 
they were rarely useful.  Moreover, MSU courses use a mix of Java, MS 
Visual C++, and standard C++, but nothing with COBOL.

If you're an MSU student, which it appears from your e-mail address that 
you are, you might try inquiring about help at the Engineering Library 
located on the first floor of the south side of the Engineering 
Building.  I don't think they offer anything specifically, but they can 
probably point you in the right direction.  You could also try the 
Computer Science department office on the third floor along the north 
face of the building.

Good luck,
-Ben

Jolyon Michael Vincent wrote:
> Guru needed! send help! I'm drowning in a vat of anxiety.
> non programmer seeks expert advice on COBOL for basic cobol class....
> 
> would like to know if there are any people in the LUG who know cobol and 
> would be willing to answer questions on an as-needed basis. Also would 
> like to know what resources msu has for programming help. 
> Tutoring/mentoring, learning labs etc etc....despite the fact that the 
> class isn't an msu class, I still need to find support.
> Also, if you know how I can use Cobol in Linux Redhat 8.0 to make 
> something usable, please let me know. I don't know why I would need to 
> learn Cobol other than the fact that it is a programming language, and 
> it has a certain structure that might be found elsewhere. (my best guess).
> Some background on my lack of programming: I took C++ at Rochester 
> Institute of Tech (www.rit.edu) and failed miserably. I took Basic in 
> grade school...Studied Virtual Basic at RIT (one week) but was generally 
> confused at that as well.Vbasic seemed to be more like web programming 
> (learned rudimentary HTML on my own...worked with dreamweaver for a-bit.)
> Background on me: I am an artist, not a mathematician! And while my 
> spelling and grammar might be abit off here, I'm more of a journalist 
> than a programmer.
> Can someone out there please teach me enough code to thwart my anxiety?
> Don't get your free email at hotmail.com
> http://www.???.org is much better.
> 
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