Comments on: The Perfect Programming Job http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/ A man needs a little madness, or else he never dares cut the rope and be free. -Nikos Kazantzakis Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:36:07 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2.1 By: Antair Achievement » Blog Archive » Micro ISV Digest http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-14002 Antair Achievement » Blog Archive » Micro ISV Digest Mon, 05 Feb 2007 15:52:56 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-14002 [...] The perfect programming job, from Jason Sankey. [...] […] The perfect programming job, from Jason Sankey. […]

]]> By: Jason http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13965 Jason Mon, 05 Feb 2007 08:37:32 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13965 Hi Guillaume, I'm glad you liked the post. I'm also impressed that even at uni you are thinking about delivering something that is Actually Useful, rather than just earning marks. I envy your users ;). Hi Guillaume,

I’m glad you liked the post. I’m also impressed that even at uni you are thinking about delivering something that is Actually Useful, rather than just earning marks. I envy your users ;).

]]> By: Guillaume Theoret http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13524 Guillaume Theoret Fri, 02 Feb 2007 11:05:08 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13524 Wow, when this came up in my feeds and I saw "The Perfect Programming Job" as a title I had a mental groan figuring it was going to be another compare-my-job-to-google piece but I was pleasantly surprised. I am graduating in a few months and this is the exact view I have of software. I don't care about code elegance nearly as much as I care about what the user gets out of what I write. (Though code elegance is the reason I like scheme.) I recently had a class that let us pick our project. I decided to help a master's student by writing a couple of tools that would help her automate a couple of steps of the process she described in her thesis. When I described my XML to Production Rules and Production Rules to Java code programs most people groaned and asked isn't that boring? What's boring to me is another sudoku solver no one will ever use (there were actually two! teams that chose to write a sudoku solver and I know another doing that this semester!). If my software helps someone out and makes their life easier and they love using it that's all I ever ask for and that's the only reason I write software. Thanks for this post, it reflects exactly how I feel. Wow, when this came up in my feeds and I saw “The Perfect Programming Job” as a title I had a mental groan figuring it was going to be another compare-my-job-to-google piece but I was pleasantly surprised.

I am graduating in a few months and this is the exact view I have of software. I don’t care about code elegance nearly as much as I care about what the user gets out of what I write. (Though code elegance is the reason I like scheme.)

I recently had a class that let us pick our project. I decided to help a master’s student by writing a couple of tools that would help her automate a couple of steps of the process she described in her thesis. When I described my XML to Production Rules and Production Rules to Java code programs most people groaned and asked isn’t that boring? What’s boring to me is another sudoku solver no one will ever use (there were actually two! teams that chose to write a sudoku solver and I know another doing that this semester!). If my software helps someone out and makes their life easier and they love using it that’s all I ever ask for and that’s the only reason I write software.

Thanks for this post, it reflects exactly how I feel.

]]> By: Jason http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13476 Jason Fri, 02 Feb 2007 01:04:57 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13476 Hi Harish, If starting up is something you want to do: go for it! It's extremely hard work but extremely rewarding. Even if you don't want to start up: just make sure you don't settle for something that's sub-par. The sort of place you are looking for exists, if you're motivated enough to find it ;). Hey, if your current workplace is close, use your own initiative to improve it! Hi Harish,

If starting up is something you want to do: go for it! It’s extremely hard work but extremely rewarding. Even if you don’t want to start up: just make sure you don’t settle for something that’s sub-par. The sort of place you are looking for exists, if you’re motivated enough to find it ;). Hey, if your current workplace is close, use your own initiative to improve it!

]]> By: Jason http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13474 Jason Fri, 02 Feb 2007 00:59:43 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13474 Hey Doug, Releasing early is great, but I would cut back on features, not quality. So just let go of a few features and polish it up a bit, then unleash upon the world. Your users will help you realise which features are the important ones anyway :). Hey Doug,

Releasing early is great, but I would cut back on features, not quality. So just let go of a few features and polish it up a bit, then unleash upon the world. Your users will help you realise which features are the important ones anyway :).

]]> By: Harish Mallipeddi http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13435 Harish Mallipeddi Thu, 01 Feb 2007 15:51:35 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13435 I just blogged about my dream job a couple of days back: http://poundbang.in/2007/01/30/the-ideal-job-workplace/ I guess I should also consider starting up :) I just blogged about my dream job a couple of days back:

http://poundbang.in/2007/01/30/the-ideal-job-workplace/

I guess I should also consider starting up :)

]]> By: Mike G http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13409 Mike G Thu, 01 Feb 2007 10:21:25 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13409 I wholeheartedly agree. When I was a freeware programmer 10+ years ago, I got a thrill not from writing code but from getting feedback from my users. I wholeheartedly agree. When I was a freeware programmer 10+ years ago, I got a thrill not from writing code but from getting feedback from my users.

]]> By: Doug @ Straw Dogs http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13403 Doug @ Straw Dogs Thu, 01 Feb 2007 08:44:41 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13403 I've been kicking myself recently over the fact I'm behind on releasing a personal Rails project of mine. I normally like to release personal projects whether complete or not and the poor user experience (such as bugs) causes me great motivation to complete a flagging project. It normally works great - My work rate increases massively. It is only a hobbie project with no real plans to make millions. However, after reading this I think I may build it on quality and not release until I'm 100% happy with its flow and I'm reasonably confident the user experience is everything it can be. If anything it would be a useful experiment. I may find I retain more users over longer than if I release early. I’ve been kicking myself recently over the fact I’m behind on releasing a personal Rails project of mine. I normally like to release personal projects whether complete or not and the poor user experience (such as bugs) causes me great motivation to complete a flagging project. It normally works great - My work rate increases massively. It is only a hobbie project with no real plans to make millions.

However, after reading this I think I may build it on quality and not release until I’m 100% happy with its flow and I’m reasonably confident the user experience is everything it can be.

If anything it would be a useful experiment. I may find I retain more users over longer than if I release early.

]]> By: Jens http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13392 Jens Thu, 01 Feb 2007 07:55:42 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13392 To both of you, I could not have said it better. There is nothing better than working with the customers who uses your software. You learn so much, and see that your assumptions does not always hold up. Actually I think that “disrupting” the world is making software that users like. When Google was the new kid on the block. People did not use it be course of the cool technology, but be course they liked the user experience they got there. To both of you, I could not have said it better. There is nothing better than working with the customers who uses your software. You learn so much, and see that your assumptions does not always hold up. Actually I think that “disrupting” the world is making software that users like. When Google was the new kid on the block. People did not use it be course of the cool technology, but be course they liked the user experience they got there.

]]> By: Moolah Belt http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13390 Moolah Belt Thu, 01 Feb 2007 07:30:01 +0000 http://www.alittlemadness.com/2007/02/01/the-perfect-programming-job/#comment-13390 Lost (losing - ?) the techie, programmer, code-like-a-demon ego since I began doing customer-facing work. Customers keep it real for me. It's not about the technology, the elegance of the code or anything that gets a geek off in the middle of the night. Sure I can code up the solution in a couple of days but DELIVERING THE VALUE can eat up the whole week. It's about leading the customer: - clarifying the problem - influencing the solution(or as I wrap it 'co-developing') - user-acceptance testing - support & maintanence Customers keep it real: what they don't teach u in comp sci. Lost (losing - ?) the techie, programmer, code-like-a-demon ego since I began doing customer-facing work.
Customers keep it real for me. It’s not about the technology, the elegance of the code or anything that gets a geek off in the middle of the night.
Sure I can code up the solution in a couple of days but DELIVERING THE VALUE can eat up the whole week.

It’s about leading the customer:
- clarifying the problem
- influencing the solution(or as I wrap it ‘co-developing’)
- user-acceptance testing
- support & maintanence

Customers keep it real: what they don’t teach u in comp sci.

]]>