How to become a world class Computer Engineer
by Abhishek
- I feel I have not done enough to become a good computer engineer. May be I did not have someone who could guide me properly. We were only the second batch of Computer Engineering at Nirma Institute of Technology, Ahmedabad, so we had no mentors in the industry.
- Second reason, may be we were not mature enough.
- Third reason, 3 Idiots was not released at that time 🙂
- So this post is dedicated to all the fellow computer engineering students (especially in India) who are still having a good time by bunking the classes but not doing good enough to become a world class computer engineer otherwise.
But what can I do?
1) Have the right infrastructure
- Get yourself a decent laptop. (I prefere Mac but any decent Dell laptop is also ok)
- Get yourself a nice internet connection with highest speed available. (Take a cut from your pocket money if you have to but this is a must)
- Get yourself an iPhone or an Android Phone (I know it is expensive in India but you will have to use world class gadgets to become world class engineer)
- Make your home or hostel room WiFi enabled. (This is not expensive. You will get a decent router in 2-3k.)
- If you are not able to do any or all of the above things, don’t worry you can still become a good computer engineer. So hang on and keep reading.
2) Learn to use Google Reader
- Google reader will become the best companion of yours for lifetime if you use it properly.
- It is nothing but a cool RSS reader from Google using which you can subscribe to blogs to get latest updates and posts. So if you have a gmail account you are ready to go. What? You do not have a gmail account yet!! Go get one right now. Stop reading. Open a gmail account now and come back. I am waiting.
- I am still waiting.
- Ok great, so you have a gmail account now, good. Watch this video.
It explains in plain english how to use Google Reader. - As a side project: Watch videos related to RSS, World Wide Web, Twitter, Social Media, Computer Hardware, Computer Software, Web Search Strategies, Wikis, Social Bookmarking, Social Networking, Blogs, Podcasting and Cloud computing on http://www.commoncraft.com/ (Now you understand why I told you get the fastest internet connection available?). You don’t have to see them all at once but do check them all and understand.
- Done? Ok so you are ready to become a world class computer engineer now.
- Now you understand Google Reader, so it’s time to subscribe to interesting blogs. Subscribe to following blogs.
- Techcrunch.com (King of Technology Blogs)
- Gigaom.com (Michael Arrington of Techcrunch considers Om Malik as his Guru)
- ReadWriteWeb.com
- Pluggd.in (Indian Techcrunch)
- JoelOnSoftware.com (a must read for programmers)
- CodingHorror.com (another must read for programmers)
- There are many such blogs but to start with these are ok. You will keep finding other interesting blogs as and when you will come across some.
- Getting used to read on computer takes time and patience so just keep reading it.
- So I guess we are done with Google Reader part here. This means you have to open up Google Reader as soon you bunk the classes or as soon as you get the time to check your mails.
3) Academic Earth
- Do you want to see how professors teach in Harvard and Stanford? Do you want to see how their lectures are conducted? You can now, we were not able to do that in our time.
- Go to www.academicearth.org and you will see videos of actual lectures and courses of Harvard, Yale, Stanford. Now you know whose lectures to watch after bunking the classes or after getting back to home.
- You do not want to miss the chance of studying in these universities without going to US to giving them millions in fees right? and guess what? Attendance is not compulsory here 🙂
4) Learn any web language quickly and start building.
- I would suggest PHP or Ruby. ASP.NET C# is also fine if you already know something about it.
- And start building something on it. It can be anything. But start programming on web now. Most of you are never going to write a program C, C++ or COBOL in your lifetime. I would not advise against learning them though.
- After you know something about web programming, read “Getting Real” from 37Signals.
- Now again build something using whatever you learned from the above book.
5) Assume you are in Silicon Valley
- I know this sounds little weird but that’s the way it is.
- The best of the minds in the world are there and you do not want to miss out on that right?
- Thousands of things happen everyday in Silicon Valley and you can remain updated by reading above blogs I mentioned.
- So start feeling the air 🙂
6) Start asking why?
- When you are attending a lecture or reading anything, have a habit of asking why?
- For e.g. Why we have to study “Strength of Materials” when most of us are going to write web applications in PHP or ASP.NET?
- When you ask why often, you start understanding the logic, the reason behind doing anything.
- Same as they have said in 3 Idiots, don’t learn to get marks but learn to know something, to achieve the excellence. When you start asking why, you start on the right path.
7) Understand computer hardware
- Most people thinks this is boring and unnecessary.
- May be it is, but it will certainly make you better programmer, even if you will never touch the inside of the computer again.
- Basic understanding of hardware is necessary to understand how computer works.
- You have to understand following 100% without any doubt in your mind.
- How your high level programming code becomes 0s and 1s and execute?
- The text which you are reading now is also consisting of 0s and 1s only then how come you are reading the alphabets here?
- FYI I am still not 100% clear on this. But I will be one day. Till then I am not a good computer engineer.
I guess I have get you started here.
By following any or all of the above steps you are destined to become world class computer engineer. By no means I am asking you to stop whatever you are doing right now in your college.
These are additional things you have to do. It takes hard work to become world class right?
You are always on your own to achieve the path of excellence. Friends and Tutors can only guide you, they can not make you one.
I would request my fellow classmates to add points in this post. I believe our batch 99CE in Nirma Institue of Technology had one of the best and brightest minds in the world. Do you have any doubt? Well this guy is one of them. 99CE people are in MIT, Google, Apple, Barclays, Bank of America to name a few. They are spread across the world and are on their way to become future leaders.
I would also request people who have read this post and feel they can add something here to help students of computer engineering. My aim is to have great people coming out of Indian Engineering Colleges.
Last words, by no means above list is exhaustive and complete. There are “n” number of ways to achieve excellence. These are my personal views and I have learned them long and hard way. I hope to make your journey little easier by this post.
Comments are whole heartedly welcome.
Update: To become world class you will have to learn language of the world “English”. Here is how you can do that.
Awesome info. I have already started going through all the stuff mentioned above and yes i am just loving it…..
Hey I want ur help… can u jst let me know a site which where I can ask my doubts related to my Computer Engg. syllabus and get answer quickly… jst send me a llink on my E mail.. hope u will help me out..
Hi Rucha, sorry I can’t help you here. I don’t know any such site.
hey there…..there is a site named http://www.udacity.com where you can easily learn and clear your doubts.
Eduwings Udaipur Go through this link… very good institute in the city of lakes…
hi abhishek sir..
i read ur artical…
i m a ce student n need ur help to b better…
i find u the person that can guide me proper way..
i have a lot of queries related to carrier n need a person to guide me…
i have given my mail id u can plz answer on that??
Lovely article.. wish u had learnt this earlier then probably i would be married to a world class computer engineer at this moment instead of the ok-ok engineer i am married to !!! :p jokes apart … it shows that you reflect on your past and would want to work on the mistakes which is great !
ohhh and students could set up their own blogs or websites and hence when they interact with others over blogs they can be tracked back by other users. like for example i wanted to meet mithil but his name doesnt carry a hyperlink because maybe he doesnt have a blog or something if he did he would have put it in the website link… i hope you get the point
yup creating a blog for yourself is a wonderful thing you can do. ultimately your domain name is going to become your CV. Students are you listening?
Yes Abhi, Awesome information you share with starters.As my point of view: there is also need to learn “How to search meaningful and useful information from the internet”.
Very very informative post..I would like to share one thing here.. As soon as you learn something, find someone who is not even knowing ABCD of that and is curious enough to ask questions. Teach the concept to him/her thoroughly. You will come to know what were the missing pieces in the thing you learnt (don’t forget to fill those missing pieces). At least your fundamentals can never be cracked.. Its my personal experience..
Great information provided in simple words, It is really usefull guidance for students as well working professionals. I really appriciate your efforts
Nice points from Vishal P. and Vishal S. 🙂 Google search is an art and you have to master it over the period of time to become the best.
Very nice and informative article. We have in fact 4 idiots in our company (don’t mind please). I can see and feel the level and class at every moment working with you. I found always new things within you (never understood from where it comes). I wish, if I could be a world class computer engineer too. Looking forward for such nice articles from you.
Really an interesting and information article for computer engineers. Even I won’t mind considering myself as an Idiot, because “Pehle Engineering Kiya Aur Phir MBA Kiya ” (ref: 3 Idiots :))…and lost the chance of being world class computer engineer. But won’t loose hope so easily and will keep trying to be atleast good engineer 🙂 ..But Sir, appreciating your efforts for posting such wonderful article for students to learn and react before time. (jaago re students)
Good post Abhi.. I completely agree to the fact that our education today is only focussed on remembering things for the sake of earning good marks.. But how much does it really help us in the practical world is a big question mark. Only personal efforts from our end can make us have an edge above others and help us become a great professional in this world of mediocrity.
Many many thanks. Good info to pass to my son to sharpen his saw. He is good, but this will help to fine tune…Karthik.
gr8 yaar.. actually am a 4thsem ce student nd when i return 4m my clg after 8hrs nd when i ask myself what did u learnt in this 8 hrs nd the ans is “nothing” I mean i wanted to comment on the poor standard of education of our colleges.People lack even the basic knowledge of their respective field. I have been guided a lot by the friends around me and one of them works in ur company.I have started learning asp.net 4m today only nd wanted to inform u that today i bunked college only to come back home and learn something.Plz guide me some more 4m ur point of view. Well last but not the least wanted to say that u r doing an awesome job and wud be glad enough if i wud get a chance to meet you some day.
gr8 gr8 post..absolutely spot on!!You came real close to my reader RSS feeds.I’d like to add maybe wired, engadget, slashdot and mashable to the feeds; and who can forget the text of Steve Jobs’ Stanford Commencement address (2005) http://bit.ly/YhHS1One question..are you a 1st generation entrepreneur..I have a hunch you’re not.Anyways thanks to you and pluggd.in for making this happen.Till then stay hungry, stay foolish…and keep posting :-).
hey .. nice info i should say …. i would mention the same points if one asks me … its also a nice idea to follow tweets of popular techies . they provides links to good articles .
Wow! didn’t know u could read my thoughts :PI really liked “Assume you are in Sillicon Valley”. A point well made.To add to this great post:Setting up ur own blogs is imp.. also to maintain the flow of information. Only intake could be overwhelming at times. Reading the wonderful blogs mentioned here keeps you informed and updated with thoughts of other people while blogging instigates your own thinking process and originality.P.S.- Abhishek, I guess u gotta fix some of ur links. techcrunch.com is pointing to https://abhishekdesai.com/techcrunch.com
Opps links are fixed now. Thank you Umesh for the kind words. I also did not that I can read your mind 🙂
Gosh! I am spellbound. The flow of writing and sequence of thoughts. I would love to read the book and can edit it too.(Have done that for 10 books) You may want to read “world class in India” By S. Ghoshal.
Thank you very much for your kind words. I will check out the book.
Heya I want ur help… can u jst let me know a site which where I can ask my doubts related to my Computer Engg. syllabus and get answer quickly… jst send me a llink on my E mail.. hope u will help me out..
i really got inspired with this as m doing engg. nd in 3rd year so very much thankful to u
jst send me a link on my email id ………….hope u will help me out for doubt
Forget Laptop-wifi-blogging – I heard that many engineering students of even 3rd year are without email ID! And, yes – that is from Nir(a)ma, MS ;)I’m still finding engineers without all of these (ie working) and they are earning good – which is yes – de facto of success here.
hmmmm…no development since long a time.I think a some new post on this page is due now…
This is a nice one….I am in 2nd year of BE Computer….We have do that early as soon as possible…This is a thing which will become us a world class computer engineer really.I am also believing that “Not much theory but practical knowledge is most important in our life.”And mostly read a Google Reader.I am also reading Google Reader.Thanks…..
hey it is a superb post. m doing computer engineering from Nirma. Thanks for the guidelines. people use to tell me follow the blog. stay updated. you have done more than that. you have actually given links for the blogs. thanks a ton!
I am glad it is helping students like you. Keep up the good work.Sent from my iPhone
i really got inspired with this as m doing engg. nd in 3rd year so very much thankful to u
This is an inspiring post.. Keep the good work up!
Thank you Sunio and Mahesh. I am glad it is helping students like you. Please spread the word in your college so that other may benefit from it.
Hi Abhi, Thanks for such a wonderful post…Its been a pleasure reading your articles since the last few months..and everytime I read it…theres always something new to learn from it…and the way you have presented this article for the beginners here..is simply superb. Keep it up. 🙂
Thanks Aalap. I hope to continue writing articles which are helpful to engineering students. I really want them to learn about the industry before they come out of college and find themselves lost.
good guide ..but please tell me how to use the google reader effectively , i am not getting that correctly
Srinivas, two videos for you. Hope they help:RSS in plain english: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0klgLsSxGsUGoogle Reader in plain english: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSPZ2Uu_X3Y
If u had written it in 2006 i could also be Good Software Engineer.. 🙁 Great Points.. Every Crammer must read…
dear abhishek bhaiya..thanx a ton for posting this..i read each and evry word with full attention…i saw the video of mr pranav..nw i feel good…being a computer engineer was always my dream…and now i’ll give my best to turn it into reality…sometimes few wrds creates a kind of magical bonds that binds us with our dreams foreva…n dis olways helps us when v c d wrst..thnx a ton for telling those seven steps..i wont forget them eva in my life… 🙂
🙂 I am glad you are already inspired and following your dream. All the best for your future.
hey abhishek….i was in lotta rambles,that was some real cool stuff….i wanna know more abt it….u having any id ID or social n/win’ account..?
Thanks a lot…..Its amazing….I m starting from the first year…
Many many thanks. Good info to pass to my son to sharpen his saw. He is good, but this will help to fine tune…
sir,I am a final year computer science engineering student having a desire to do something of my own.But my family members and colligues say that you can not do anything else have any industrial experience.But I want to carry on my work…Please help me choose my future..Thanks
Hello Radhesyam,Having an industrail experience can help but it can go against you also as you will get used to that comfortable life. Starting something of your own will not give you that life ateast for few years. So I would suggest you to start now even before completing the graduation. Earlier the better. We all started our company without any real world experience.Sent from my iPhone
many many thanks for the reply sir.Sir, I can build dynamic websites in PHP and MySql with perfection and already developed some.Will it be helpful to join Odesk and start working, so that i can earn some revenue for my work and simultaneously it will give me some real life project experience?Should I start from a website as my base from where I can expand by area?
Working on oDesk is definitely a good idea. Nothing will teach you more than that. All the best.By the way, you can call me Abhishek!
thanks a lot!
sir, thank u for your assistance.actually i m new to these stuff that u mention here ,but i found it very much intresting . so its my sinceare request to u that please help me with my begining….and send me supporting feedback.and at last i appriciate your journy of building world class engg from india.
I have already given you a start. Now it’s up to you for taking it to the finish line. All the best.Sent from my iPhone
sir, can u tell me some of the blogs or sites that provide language like(c,c++,java,.net) assistant and actual industrial environment experience.
Just google for it, you should find plenty. But blogs can not give you industrial environment experience. Start doing something for yourself and that will be your experience.
thanks a lot sir
Sir,Thanks, Thanks a lot,i am doing party now….beer party…. but i read your blog….i understand but my frnds are not,we complete our MCA from Indore but not get any job,,but after reading your lesson i confident that i can,,,,so thank u a lot…..
Hi Abhishek,…it feels nice to see that you are doing such a great job.
Thanks Jaydeep. Doing the best I can 🙂
hi abhisek bro,me tarun doing my b.tech 2nd year in tamilnadu.very nice post.u know ur friend pranav mistry is from my place orissa.now u r where and wht doing?please reply being such a friendregards,tarunwww.littleraindrops.co.cc
Hi TarunHope you are found well. Utilize these years as best as you can to get maximum out of life. Pranav Mistry is from palanpur, Gujarat. He is a greate role model to all of us and he is the one who has proved to be a world class engineer. Keep up the good work.Sent from my iPhone
I am a second year student. I am not getting marks in my exams…. i am fail in a 80% theory subjects…But i am having a lot of practical knowledge about computer like C/C++ programming, controlling servers, a lot of hardware knowledge, etc…What should I do to get a job and to improve my skills…..?????
Well just keep doing what you are good at which is programming, hardware etc and do just enough to get out of college. It is sad truth but you will have to at least pass to get a job. But if you want to something of your own, drop out now ;)Sent from my iPhone
Thanks for your reply…….This time I will work hard to get some good marks….But tell me about some programming based courses which I can do to get a good job?????My friend suggest me to do SAP… Is it good or not?????
There are no programming courses which are good. So do not fall in that trap. No one can teach you programming except yourself. So keep programming whatever language you like and you will learn the best.Sent from my iPhone
@Chintu: Hello Dude… I am a fresh pass-out from PICT, Pune. I have also spent a lot of leisurely time in Engineering, but now I realize that it was the biggest mistake I had ever done, but now I have subjected myself totally to technical work.Anyways…lets talk about your matter. First thing as told by Abhishek in the above reply, classes are not good, the most they can do is just they can get you started with some coding in a particular language. Ultimately it all depends on you how you develop yourself. My view is to apply the knowledge that you have gained through recent books and IT articles may be some classes in college. Try creating simple programs first then hop on to something more challenging, create your own Applications for computers or may be mobile devices, web applications etc.This way it will help you to explore the language, gain more knowledge and it will also prove your capabilities in programming. Believe me it helps coz I follow it…Dont just aim at getting a job.Job is something everyone gets. Aim at being SUCCESSFUL.
great work my friend
thank you dude keep it your good work try to make this web site better than this
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hey can somebody help me ? i wanna be a computer Engineer but i heard that is very hard and i m worried about that so tell me it is really hard or what ?And i m study in USA……..please help me and give me a real answer………
i’m a b.tech cse student.. i have just completed Ist year.. now i have 2 months summer vacation. i only now C language till now. so, what will u suggest me to do : learn a new language like c++ or java or asp.net etc. or internship or web designing.?? Also is there any use of learning a foreign languge in cse engineering?and is the comp. languages like c, c++, java etc. interelated? i mean if i dont know the basic one like c++ i wont be able to understand java and all??
I suggest going deeper in learning C for now. Build something using C. Don't worry about learning something new at this moment.
okk…thanx a lot :). not even french ?
i mean a foreign languge
hii sir.. read blog found it very interesting .. iam doing comp engg..in mumbai . attending lectures doesn’t worth me bcoz teacher do not explain d whole concepts . they only try to complete d syllabus .i want u to suggest some refernece book for data structure and files..plz
awesome info…..!!
Great Shailee. I am glad it is useful for you. Spread the word if more people like you can benefit from this article.Abhishek Desai Cell +91 98790 33534 (Available 24X7 on this) My short musings are @ http://twitter.com/abhishekdesaiLonger are at https://abhishekdesai.com/
thank u sir!u have done a fabulous job by writing this aritcle.i would like to add that reference books are always better than our small texts (personal view)
good job sir
keep guiding th juniors
This is good, I am addicted to my engineering career to be an excellent engineer. Thanks very much
This is good, I am addicted to my engineering career to be an excellent engineer. Thanks very much
This has motivated me to do something after facing few failures . I will complete with my undone projects like u said keep building .
Really nice and Helpful. I hope I make good use of it!
Sir,I can’t express my happiness…Today I got the answers of the questions annoying me since the the three and half years..I am in 8th sem CE at NIRMA.Sir u should come to NIRMA and take a lecture…students really need this.. thnx deepely from my heart.. 🙂
i need an online free classe pls
The blogs you mentioned above in your article are still to be prefered or any changes in it is reqiured for first year engg student ?
sir one more question which should i learn c # or web designing?
thank you for reply.nikesh
Nikesh,
Most of the blogs are still relevant but there are better blogs out there. You have to find it on your own.
Learn what you like the most. There is no straight answer.
hey isn’t google reader closed now?
what should i do then??
Try Feedly
Computer science is about programming and software design but computer engineering is about designing computer hardware such as mainframe or laptop .Expert in use of internet, search of google and blog do not make one a computer engineer.
Hello Abhishek,
Thanks for this great post. Really interesting……..
am weak in programming, what should i need to do??
like ur article by heart.. 🙂 want to do right now these points..
really informative….. Thnxxxxx….
Now i know what to do….
To Abhishek,
Firstly kudos to you for taking such earnest efforts towards benefit of others.
I had been much awaiting to read something useful like this article!
I already follow most of the things you’ve mentioned. As a matter of fact being a Mumbai University student, I have mostly studied online through nptel(IIT) and Stanford.
There are a few things I’m really curious about. It would be great if you would answer them. Here I go :
1. What knowledge based skills are top companies looking for in computer engineering freshers.
(i.e. software skills, hardware skills, etc.)
2. Which programming languages are a must know for the present.
3. I am only half way through my engineering, however I feel deprived of the true knowledge the subjects should impart. Sadly Mumbai University is extremely boring and unchallenging when it comes to true knowledge of the subjects.
By far the computer related subjects I have studied are:
i)c++
ii)java
iii)Data Structures and Files
iv)Analysis and Design of algorithms
v)Database Management Systems
vi)Computer Organization and Architecture
vii)Computer graphics
viii)Operating Systems
I haven’t been able to go in depth of these subjects due to my own laziness and the unfortunate restrictions that MU imposes on our syllabus.
If you could guide me as to which of these subjects should be a MUST KNOW in DEPTH, I’d be grateful to you.
Thank you,
Vijay.
Thnks for the info.It will very helpful to me.But does any one know where can i learn the language like cpp in detail. I want to learn that language deeply.Plz help me.
THnks
HELLO SIR,
I AM DIPLOMA IN COMPUTER ENG.
MY QUESTION IS THAT “AFTER COMPETING WHICH TO CAREER?”
THANK YOU.
i belong a poor family and there is no one to guide me in my relation.So it feels great to have a mentor like u……….
Thank you sir, for your wonderful post….
Am a 16 year old in my 200L computer engineering am doing very well i just need guidance not to make a wrong decision and do the right thing or get the quality textbooks you can help me prescribe 🙂
[…] How to become a world class computer engineer? 2) How to learn English the Gujarati Way? 3) How to get internship in Software Companies? 4) Tools […]
Greeting sir,
Acctually i am confused regarding my clg life, i thougth i am wasting my time over there thats why i decided to do courses available in market but still i am confused which 1 is better for me to aquire a job plz let me know.
google reader has been shut down :/
is there any alternative to that?
Yup there are many like Feedly. In fact now you can try apps like flipboard as well for the same purpose.
yeh bro. . . .
u r A big genius bro. . .
thanks for that much info . i am engg student
i can design the simple website but i want to
learn advanced web developing skill but i cant found the resource.please give me the
important name of site which help me to do
new in webdevelopment.
gr8 sir I really need ur help because what are the things u mentioned above I am lack on that and please suggests me some wapsites where can I learn basics of computer science and engineering
thank you
What about windows phone? what will happen if we use windows phone?
can we also use live tile feature on win8.1 or live bookmarks feature in Mozilla ………….
instead of RSS reader
Thank you For This Good Instruction To Being Started
if u want information about computer hardware then u can use http://www.tomshardware.com website. This is one of finest website in the world which give u best answers.
Hii Abhishek, I am study in L j i e t ahmedabad in computer engineering.so computer engineering k bad ham konsa field me ja sakata he
m jst starting n is jst unfamiliar with any of the things to do..will try the above advice…hope u all would help me..
very kind of u to post this..helps a lot..thank u!! wishing u success 🙂
the venus factor review netgear vs linksys
Hi Abhishek sir,
Thank u for all those wonderful ways ,but now Google has been discontinued google reader can anyone suggest any other mean for that
Thank u in advance
feedly.com or theoldreader.com
Naver stop to think logically
Kprblog.in .. Really A good website for computer engineering students.. Just inspired.. 🙂
I visited a website named Kprblog.in , Its completely for computer engineering students.. Good pick..
A lot of thanks on behalf of me for giving such a motivative guidance that touched my heart deeply because even I want to become world class computer engineer and you guy made it my this dream possible , i learnt many things so, once again thank you very much.
Nice one bro, i really appreciate this info…..thanks alot
Very interesting information….
I like RSS blog very much….
Thanks for sharing your experience….☺
I think by following ur info I can fulfill my dream to be a perfect computer engineer….
Again a big big thanks☺
Thank you
Thanks for this information, it’s really helpful for Nagpur engineering colleges students, they are always looking for different engineering blogs where they can find relevant information related to their study. I think it will help them to become world class computer engineer.