Kind of a part of growing up, i guess…There had been times where i’d get a new development tool, or hear of a language, then i’d just download it and start trying to work with it. “I learn from experience!” I’d say. While that statement still holds true; I’ve picked up that I can take much more in by reading the documentation first, then trying it out. I’m at a point where I don’t have to rely on the documentation being 100% correct, but written well enough that i can understand the concepts behind the product (or language), and then go for it. But at the very least…reading the documentation first. I’m less sloppy that way, and a tad more patient, and spend my time a little better.

Application:
I’ve been reading a few books lately (see sidebar). In particular i’ve been getting a little bit into C#, by reading through the Nutshell book before starting, then messing with a little bit of sample code. It’s coming along better than if I would have just opened up SharpDevelop and started hacking.