Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs Video Lectures
Shares rank 2 of 15 conference talks by recommenders
People recommend these MIT lectures by Sussman and Abelson for clearly explaining core programming ideas like abstraction, state and mutability, and they say the lectures work well alongside the book.
People recommend these MIT lectures by Sussman and Abelson for clearly explaining core programming ideas like abstraction, state and mutability, and they say the lectures work well alongside the book.
12 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 11
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 92%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 11 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 11 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Works well with the book
“I think the lectures are much better and the book acts as a supplemental reference.”
Comment from 8 Jul 2026 in “Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs Video Lectures” “which I found very helpful in (finally) managing to get through that entire text”
Comment from 18 Mar 2026 in “Rob Pike's 5 Rules of Programming” “it's still better than just reading the book on your own”
Comment from 8 Jul 2026 in “Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs Video Lectures” - Comment from 8 Jul 2026 in “Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs Video Lectures”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Poor audio quality
“The audio is so bad on these lectures.”
Comment from 8 Jul 2026 in “Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs Video Lectures”
Other conference talks people recommend
The four most recommended other conference talks, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple Made Easy by Rich Hickey | 22 | 1 | 96% | 9 | — | Approved |
| Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs Video LecturesThis page | 11 | 1 | 92% | 3 | — | — |
| The Birth and Death of JavaScript by Gary Bernhardt | 11 | 2 | 85% | 6 | — | Approved |
| Wat by Gary Bernhardt | 9 | 1 | 90% | 5 | — | — |
| Porting Linux to Apple Silicon by Asahi Linux | 8 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
12 of the 14 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“almost everyone would benefit from watching these videos if they haven't already”
“I worked through these videos and the full book.”
“those that I did have had a lasting impact”
“the gap between 'high level programming' and 'construction of machines using gates' is thoroughly walked through and evaporated”
“it's still better than just reading the book on your own”
“these talks distill out the core questions of topics like mutability and state management and abstraction”
“This is how I learned lisp.”
“The audio is so bad on these lectures.”
“Sussman and Abelson are great at teaching.”
“Watch the first one and you'll be hooked”
“I think the lectures are much better and the book acts as a supplemental reference.”
“which I found very helpful in (finally) managing to get through that entire text”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.