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Coders Say Yes To Telecommuting, No To Ping Pong
8127972 writes "News.com is has a story on a survey that describes the perks that coders and other IT types want. According to the survey, they want their companies to spring for membership to health clubs, a free car, wireless phone, and anything that aids telecommuting. Foosball, ping-pong, billiards and other rec-room staples ranked at the bottom of the list--even lower than free dance lessons. The full survey is at Techies.com. Maybe this should be sent to the PHB's?"
Who wouldn't want a free car versus a foosball table you are only allowed to play after hours (They said it makes too much noise).
Out of curiosity, I was wondering how many companies actually got there employees cars. I've only heard of a couple.
My Weblog
Due stupid tax system here is better for company to provide you with cellular phone, car, separate office, simply everything else than higher salary.
/generalisation
:-)
But on the plus side, it costs the company less to acquire these sort of things in bulk than it would for an individual employee. So both sides win. What's becoming increasingly common in the UK is for a portion of salary to be paid in vouchers for certain retailers (usually supermarkets) 3-way win: The company can get bulk discounts, the supermarkets get guaranteed trade, and the employees (supposedly) get a better remuneration deal.
The IT sector is very lucky in terms of the perks employees get, when compared to other industries (I would guess that this is due to the percieved "skills shortage" that HR mgrs often witter on about) although there does often seem to be agap of what employees need and want compared with what employers are prepared to give... Probably due to a deficiency of expertise in management of IT-skilled people, due to managers having been trained in other industries.
Of course, I'm still in favour of having dress-up Fridays, where people can come to work all tarted-up....
I guess it depends on your line of work more than anything.. I maintain the infrastructure for the external web sites for a major communications company, and I work in a group with over a dozen "web techies" like myself, and while we do have a few occasional telecommuters among us, the concensus is that it would be far too difficult for us to do our jobs from home.
Many (like myself) even go so far as to indicate that they'd lack the self-discipline to get as much done working from home as they would in the office. The work atmosphere is great there.
On the development side of the house (numbering in the hundreds of developers building web content), only a miniscule portion of them telecommute, and this is mainly out of necessity (office space is at a premium!).
I mean don't get me wrong, I imagine some of us would like to telecommute if given the opportunity, but my own practical experiences in corporate IT differ from these results.
And again, it might just be the type of work, and the type of company I work for.. I just can't help but wonder where the bias in this poll is.
For some reason it reminds me of the 99 bottle of beer website. That's not funny, but it uses "print/display the entire lyrics to the 99 bottles of beer song" instead of "Hello World" in languages ranging from COBOL to Befunge to YACC. It's an interesting read, at least.
To email, do the obvious.
When I see a company brag in an article or ad about having ping-pong tables it goes on my list of places where I'm not going to apply for a job.
Nothing wrong with having ping-pong tables, but something is messed up if that is considered worth mentioning in the PR or job ads.
damn now I feel like coding again. Did you really have to post this offtopic message? What's wrong with you people?
Seriously, don't throw the baby out the the bathwater. I know someone who telecommutes and they love it. It really depends on how much of a control freak your boss is.
You know what I like about telecommuting from Chico, CA?
I can go out in the middle of the day to do some mountain biking, or take a walk through the park.
If there's a farmer's market in the afternoon (and I always missed 'em when working onsite), I can go there. Won't necessarily buy anything, but it's cool to meet friends -- and, living in a small community, I always meet someone I know there.
I can live in the small town I love rather than the bay area, where my company is.
And I don't play games. No Quake, no Counterstrike. And I don't order pizza out.
As for the gossip, my officemates are all on IRC -- a poor excuse for real interaction, but I get plenty of that from local sources. I no longer am sleeping in my cube and missing out on social events. Telecommuting is what you make it. If you're the kind of loser who would live as you described above -- well, then, office life is for you. Don't presume it's for everyone else as well.
You made a good point I used to work from home and even though I was making good money, I didn't have time to go out with friends, well actually I did but I got so absorbed in my work that I forgot everything else, almost never went out, ordered pizza's, played some quake and when friends called I didn't feel like talking to them. Anyway got myself a new job, pays twice less but at least I'm not the hermit I used to be.
Screw the free health club memberships, I think that all companies should be required to provide a NERF armory for employee use.
"Techies also want their companies to spring for membership to local spas or health clubs.That goes to prove that we do realise the need for exercising our bodies once in a while. It's a reverse trend -- earlier one needed to do something extra to exercising the brain, at these times we need to get out of that favourite chair, whether from watching TV or working on the computer, and exercise our bodies.
There's always sufficient, but not always at the right place nor for the right folks.
...but how the concubines got into my jammies, I'll never know.
I mean... if you really want your employer to pay for that much stuff... you must spend way too much time at work!
I don't *want* a pool table or a foosball table at work.. but that's probably because I don't spend weeks on end at work without going home.
Telecommuting? -aka- 'working from home'. Yes. If this fits your job, that's fantastic. Yes, your employer should furnish a few things if it's his choice to have you work from home. If it's an option, he should leave more of that up to you.
Should he pay for your network connection? Perhaps. There should be some incentive for working from home, *IF* it costs the company less money to have you do so. (I know I could do it, but then I look at the number of people I ineract with on a daily basis.. and realize that I would not be giving the company as much).
From those I've seen, an amicable arrangement is:
The company should:
Pay for the computers & equipment involved.
Pay for the data communications lines.
Pay for the software in use.
Pay the employee for travel time if they must come in for meetings.
But that's about IT!
"Techies are quite creative people;
they look at themselves as code
artists," Berg said. "When they get
inspired, they need to act on it, in
the middle of the night or on the
bus or metro and...in unusual
situations."
I think this is unnecessary romanticizing. Programmers are workers like anyone else, they're not some special artists that need to be coddled. Yes, perks are nice, but there's a hell of a lot of snotty coders out here that request outrageous salaries, want free cars, etc, because they think they're god's gift to the company. I don't hear marketing asking for work-sponsored masseuses because they're creative and sensitive people the company can't do without, despite the fact that, unfortunately, marketing and sales have more of an impact on the success of a company.
Fortunately, with the demise of lame internet companies with no business model and the correction of outlandish tech stock prices, this is on a decrease. People are realizing that programmers are not glamorous magicians that make or break a company. And they don't get free Z3's anymore, thank god.
-lx
Mmmmm... Yes. my g5 is much better than any automobile.
-xt
Hrmmm... I think that is what his "friend" is/does.
And I am sure she is a really good "teacher" if you know what I mean.
I dunno... foosball seems to make work go quite a bit faster. I mean really, how bad can work be if I spend an hour a day playing foosball?
Mr. Brown Drinker and Portal-Potty Founder.
Pick which 18hrs a day you wish to work.
I think somebody has a little too much time on their hands. Good work, guy.
--------------------------------------
If Murphy's Law can go wrong, it will.
My girlfriend works at the Art Technology Group and they have a fooseball table (aptly named Dynamo), a pool table, and a big tv with a playstation and while it might the best perk of the job (probably everyone getting a Palm V last quarter is up at the top) it is greatly appretiated and used by meny of them in the company. I can only wish they have a fooseball table at my next job.
Telecommuting is all well and good - but do you want to be a hermit?
Rise at 11AM, slump 5 yards to coffee machine and prss a button. Log in, then while drinking coffee catch up with email, slashdot and other important "cant miss" work things.
At 1PM, put something in the microwave and think about begining work. Assumung you are self disaplined you are finished by 7PM, just in time to flick on the news.
If you arent however you'll do 1/2 an hours work before drifting back to a game of quake - you'll put the time in at the end of day/week/month you say.
Your daily workload is finished by 10PM, and your pizza arrives (please tip the pizza guy - thanks). You watch a pr0n video and have a few hour of counterstrike before slipping back into bed.
You havent got dressed all day, you havent seen the sun, you've not spoken to another living soul, you've missed buying the paper from Bernie on the street outside, you've missed on the latest gossip.
Working from home seems idilic, but you dont see anyone, have hundereds of distractions, you think of your apt. as a cell, you might even start to resent your computer!
It's not all rosy.
Hold on a minute, there are some cuties in sales and marketing!
Foosball, ping-pong, billiards and other rec-room staples ranked at the bottom of the list
Hey, don't knock the foosball. Of course they were at the bottom of the list, a foosball table is something which your company lets you occasionally share with the other employees. Naturally a car, or a health club membership, or free computer stuff is going to rank higher since they are used exclusively by the person they're given to. What would you rather have: a porsche which you can use during the lunchbreak and share with six other people, or a Toyota Camry which is yours and yours alone?
I... could burn the whole building down....
Moof!
Help with adopting children
EHHH!!! [checkdate=1stApr2001=Negative]
Why in hell would an employee want such a benefit? Do techies have trouble doing this or something?
Seems to me that this might have been one of those on-line surveys that are easily broken.
Agreed... telecommunication == good. Workers asking for perks that could be used by the company to expect after hours work from home == bad. I just found it funny that people wanted these perks that could, potentially, lead to more off-the-clock work. Personally, if I couldn't have a bonus as a perk, I'd choose to get perks at the workplace (free soda, lounge rooms, etc.).
I could not justify my existence if I were a turkey farmer. Would I terminate myself? Undoubtably, yes.
Dude, if you ever find a semi-rational company, that doesn't change policies randomly or have massive office politics or change requirements without changing deadlines, let me know. That's like, Utopia. On the flipside tho, there are TONS of companies out there that don't require insane workweeks and are very flexible with your schedule. I've worked for a few. You don't have to put up with that.
"This message is composed of 100% recycled electrons."
It does not work in Europe. Due stupid tax system here is better for company to provide you with cellular phone, car, separate office, simply everything else than higher salary.
After all, the perks of telecommuting should be more than working in your jammies.
cz
Wait. You know a PHB that provides his employees with an unwanted pool table? Talk about different standards...
NEWSFLASH
Many companies already do that, except instead of calling their paid-for cellphone they call... your home phone. Often late into the night.
At least if they get used to calling the cell phone you can occasionally turn it off. Then if the Pointy-Haired type wants to call your home phone, they have to dig it up - in other words at least you have the satisfaction of knowing you made them do a little work.
Frankly, a colleague of mine uses his Nextel phone to go wander off to "fun" places (ie offsite) knowing that he's reachable within seconds.
Moof!
After the nth day where a client phone call woke me up, and I found myself working within 30 seconds of awakening, I remembered how a short commute can be a nice way to ramp up to the day. And I realized that having multiple clients means multiple bosses rather than none. Finally, I noticed that I was _always_ in a work mindset while at home, and that there was nowhere to go home to if I wanted to leave it behind.
My employment is much more conventional now (although the schedule is still mighty loose), and when I go home, I'm home. And I never can seem to remember how to dial in to work from home ...
--tim
I agree with the people who pointed out that all these perks are well and good, but money is better than nearly all the others. If they're worried about tax, how about upping the amount they'll pay into a 401(k) or whatever you folks call it over there (posting from Australia, where we have a similar system).
Certain things, in my mind, don't even count as perks at all: anything involving caffeine, anything that makes it more efficient to get to/from work or easier to stay there (like a cafeteria that serves dinner until late..) - these aren't perks. They might be good or bad, but no-one should feel that these kind of services are some sort of gift. These services exist to make working really long hours seem normal.
The problem with a lot of the other perks is that they're often inflexible (what if I want to train at Igor's Horrid Iron Basement rather than YuppiePump Gym?) and essentially amount to subsidizing certain lifestyles (why should the company effective pay people with kids/gym habits/ interests in dance/etc. more?)
Are you implying there's something wrong with free dance lessons???
1.
If you have somebody to manage your ITs and they cannot understand the first technical thing that is said to them, fire that useless bastard.
2.
If control and monitoring are such a vital issue, have mandatory company network logon times to start work, monitor changes in files, and all other activities that makes people in charge feel like they really are important.
3.
Provide the tools or access to them at home that they have at the workplace. (This does not include coffee)
4.
Chart and progress work to show accomplishments, send status reports, make the work you accomplish known.
5.
Push the environmental holocaust we are causing by needless drives, wasted paper, and any other angle you can use.
The money saved alone from firing micromanagement middlefools and most management in general would afford a company enough to either fatten their pockets or increase employee loyalty. If you find your work at home employee not performing up to par, fire them just as you would if they were in the office. I would also tend to agree with a statement I read from another reply, I would be more inclined to work if I were at home relaxed, comfortable, and not harrassed and pestered by sales,management,and an ever ringing phone. I would not be pressed to get out of the office to escape office politics and other BS, and thus would not want to walk away so fast from code I am working on. I consider myself an average guy, not too greedy, and I think M-F workweeks should be a standard, vacations should consist of more than 10 days out of 365, a decent salary, and a boss to answer to that understands what I am trying to explain regarding the code and the impact from it.
Nuff said, rather than bitching about it I am going to make it happen. Always some job for an IT in some big city somewhere, consulting or other.
-1 Overrated (Too many big words for me to comprehend)
You immediately assume the worst scenario. There is a middle ground somewhere. I would *love* to be able to take my kids to school, handle my e-mail between 8:30 and 10AM at home, then drive to work and get in contact with the rest of the world. It would save me many aggrivating hours in the car and enhance family life too.
To Terminate, or not to Terminate, that's the question - SCSIROB
Anything in the office is probably 100% tax free. Anything that goes to the individual is in the grey area.
I can't speak for US laws but here (sweden) where taxes are really high, "is it deductable" is a more important question then "what does it cost"
My cell phone is paid for by my employer. It is classified as a work tool, so it's only a problem if I use it too much for personal calls and my boss doesn't like me. (and, hey, this is sweden everyone has a cell phone, and usually it's not their first one)
A car would not be a good deal for me unless I drive a lot "in the line of duty"
A computer at home could be a work tool or for study. No problem.
Gym fees is deductable up to a certain amount, so most employers will sponsor it with the same amount (roughly 100-150$)
All opinions are my own - until criticized
An unlimited supply of chili dogs.
my other penis is a vagina
All valid points, but they can be overcome. These guys in my home town seem to manage by not having an office (thereby ensuring office politics are harder) and working over IRC for water cooler chat, meetings, etc.
Who needs a free car when you can get a free Airplane!
---There is no spoon....---
Of course people want to telecommute. Who the hell wants to sit in traffic? I can't believe all the people on the road every day HAVE to be there between 8 and 5 EVERY day. Telecommuting is an inexpensive way to cut our oil consumption and reduce pollution and traffic congestion. But every time these issues come to the fore do we hear anything about telecommuting? No. Instead it's build more roads or commuter trains or bus route expansion.
The reason is simple. Employers like to be able to pop their heads in your office and demand status updates. They think that if there isn't the constant threat of them walking in, you won't work hard. They don't trust workers. I've thought about this alot. I can't come up with any other compelling reason why telecommuting isn't being more widely adopted.
Wansu, th' chinese sailor
I'd rather have a perk of a bonus that would cover the expenses for the toys you just listed. If the company knows they are giving me tools that I can use at home to do work, they may insist on it... "Here's your cell phone, and since we have the number, we'll feel free to call anytime we need something done."
I could not justify my existence if I were a turkey farmer. Would I terminate myself? Undoubtably, yes.
I've completely given up on them ever completely removing me.
---
seumas.com
As a pool player, I must say, that a whole lot of pool players are Science people. Math, Physics, CS, ... It's a game about science. I'm not talking about those 6 ft tables you see in the bars, those are not really billiards.
Billiards is a game of planning and execution. It is a game that doesn't require you to be fit. (you know what I mean.) and it's a game that you don't need to develop muscles to play. I think it's EXACTLY a game for us.
So a encourage fellow geeks and geekesses to go to a GOOD pool hall and study the beauty of the game. play some. you can't be productive if you stare at the monitor 20 hours a day.
Amen!
:)
I absolutely refuse to work more than 8hrs a day. Period. Hell, I'd even get time and a half if I did, but I don't. Work simply is NOT the most important thing to me. And taking it one step father, ANYTHING I do that's at all work related gets charged to the company. That includes commute. Amazingly, my manager agrees with me on this. Hell, with 60 mi a day just getting to work and back puts 21000 miles on my car in a year. Not to mention 350 hours/year of my time.
My point? Our employers don't give us anything for free, so don't give them anything either.
(Hmpf...suddenly I don't really feel like being at work.)
You're telling me! I'm a consultant, working on-site at the moment. And it's over an hour and a half commute each way. And that's if there are no problems with the trains. (For those of you outside the UK - it's monsoon season here, and all the trains are fscked) It's taken me over 3 hours at times, and on Monday I couldn't get in at all!
/is/ the way forward - as offices move toward hot-desking and methods of work that are geographically-independant... And I reckon that even if the quantity of contact time between cow-erkers may decrease, the /quality/ of that time would increase. (Consider all those pointless meetings.....)
:-/
And a survey published yesterday (I forget the source) claims that commuting is the biggest cause of stress in workers' lives. No surprise, when it takes you 12 hours to do 8 hours work..
Telecommuting
At the moment, the main thing holding back teleworking is not the technology, it's the culture of "fear-thy-customer". As long as companies continue to believe that customers want the thought of their suppliers having all their employees in one place all the time, things just won't change... Sadly.
At my last job, I was the "Are you fucking nuts? No way in hell!" guy. (I'd like to first state that people were either upset or at least faked sadness when I left). As time passed, it became somewhat less effective, and quite tiring, so I had to start trying to force other people to do the bitching, which of course starts to feel a bit like office politics of the least interesting sort rather quickly.
If I'm going to play office politics, I'd rather be using it to improve my position of authority, not trying to make up for weakness above.
-
Just because it works, doesn't mean it isn't broken.
I don't know if there are any special laws/regulations regarding telecommuting in the USA, but I know for sure that over here in Germany telecommuting employees usually are of no benefit to the company they work for. The reason for this is just because you/your PHB decide that you might as well work from home, your work environment still needs to satisfy certain requirements, like a proper chair that does not ruin your spine from false seating, a proper desk with sufficient lighting (between X and Y Lumen), a proper place to store (possibly confidential) company documents seperate from any private documents you might care to keep so that none of your family might see the confidential docs etc.
If the company wants you to telecommute they have to take care of all these things *AT YOUR HOUSE*. They have to buy and install you that chair, that desk, that document filer etc. That's usually a lot more expensive than the office you already have (and no, Mam, we don't do cubicles over here, we like real walls with real doors not only for the PHBs but for everyone).
I dunno about kaput, but techies.com appears to have solved their slashdot effect problem... that page crashes my Netscape every time I try and load it.
I'd tell you what platform I'm running on, but then I'd have to post as AC.
I can see the fnords!
I'd just like to call you on one of your points:
- Changing requirements mean changing deadlines
This is not strictly true. Changing requirements mean different trade-offs. It is possible to trade other things and meet the original deadline. Usually the things traded are quality and testing - but it is also possible to trade other requirements - I can and have told business people 'yes, I can include that new feature, but to meet the deadline I will have to drop one of these three - tell me which one you don't want'. I find that users/customers/etc are very reasonable when presented a common-sense argument like that and will make the trade-off if their deadline is sufficiently important that they want to avoid slippage.
Also check out development methodologies and approaches such as time-boxing, FDD and XP.
~Cederic
I remember a couple of telecommuters we had, they'd show up at monthly meetings, and people would glare at them.
Aaarrgggghh. That's the sort of mentality that has always sustained pointless, morale-draining corporate policies, like dress codes, inflexible "flex" time (pick which schedule you want: 8 to 4:30, or 8:30 to 5; then stick to it forever), "seniority" as the sole criterion for advancement and raises (i.e., how long your butt's been in your chair matters more than how good your work is)...
What kills me is: IMHO, people glare at telecommuters because they hate their own daily commute and think that everyone should suffer the way they do. And they wind up reinforcing their own misery by maintaining a corporate culture where telecommuting is beyond the pale.
If I telecommuted and got that reaction from coworkers, I'd be furious. Bad enough when PHB's judge you by your hours or your clothes instead of your work. Worse still when coworkers, who should have a clue, judge you by trivial things.
Yes, exactly. "'You're going back to the 9-5, shirt-and-tie, cubicle-dwelling lifestyle. And we're going to double your pay." Hmmm...I don't think so.
/.. Some things in life are more important than money.
And I only make 30K a year doing my research & information-gathering/synthesis/output gig, but on the other hand, I can work from home if and when I want, wear whatever I want, have a brutal commute of three city blocks, and spend time at the office coaxing my station's ancient PC and/or reading
Interrobang
Hmmm...maybe it's a girl thing...
I'm not a geek, I'm just a clever script.
"Here's your cell phone, and since we have the number, we'll feel free to call anytime we need something done."
Newsflash
In a private conversation an employee of a major cellphone company has been overheard while mentioning a radical new concept that should find it's way into the cellphone market somewhere in the near future. Our anonymous source described this new development as being "an off button".
People replying to my sig annoy me. That's why I change it all the time.
The only perks that make sense are those that can't be replaced by cash. Like things that improve the work environment (I'm sure you can find an alternative if you don't like foosball!).
(Yes, the company may get a better deal on the perks than you would, but I doubt the difference is worth the loss of choice. And yes, an employer has reason to subsidize items that make employees more productive, but I take perks to mean "above what the company should rationally give".)
The evaluation of an action as 'practical' . . . depends on what it is that one wishes to practice.
I find it best to get into work at 6-6:30 am at least 3 hours before anyone else gets here, and finish at 4 pm.
The benefits to this are:
I reckon a great benefit would be subsidised sports club memberships, that would save me a bit on my golf fees...
--- Can i borrow your Clue-Stick(tm)? I need to go beat a few people with it...
Part of the reason companies won't give you flexible hours is because managers like to see what you are doing and know where you are and how to reach you. It's not enough that they make you carry a pager, but they want to be able to pull you into an emergency meeting at any time of the day. They thrive off of consistency in the schedule, not being consistent with your work as much. I think that the only way that we will get flexible hours is when these businesses wake up and become results based rather than time based. If I tell my manager it will take me two months to finish a project working 9 - 5, for 5 days a week, I should also be permitted to work 16 hour days for a month if I want so I can finish the project, then take the next month off. I would have done all the work in the time period that we had arranged, so my benefit would be that I could have the time left over to relax. The problem from a manager's point of view is that they are not trained very well to know if we would B.S. them or not. Sure, I could say it will take a month, but what if my project really only took a week to finish because I wanted to get extra time off to screw around? That isn't honest, and the manager really wouldn't have any way to know. I think we will start on the right path when businesses care more about the results of our work than how long we are sitting around in the office, but there are still those few issues to be resolved.
The same goes for telecommuting with one exception. I would think that technically, we would end up getting more work done if we telecommute rather than go into the office. Personally, I live alone, so there would be no distractions other than what I would create for myself. If I were to sit down and start coding, then I would probably end up working more hours at home sitting on the sofa with a laptop than I would if I were stuck in a cubicle being distracted by everyone surrounding me, and all the additional office politics. I think the only disadvantage to telecommuting is that my boss would not know what I am doing very much, so unless he arranged for me to send him status reports or something, he would be completely in the dark and appear stupid to his boss. Also, there is the cost, as a lot of companies that have employees that telecommute pay twice for equipment. Most people will telecommute only part of the time, but also need a desk to sit at for the days they do need to go in to work. I think we are getting closer though, and if the government gives more tax breaks and such for companies that have a lot of telecommuters, businesses will let more of us do it.
Also, about vacation time. We need more of it. I really don't like how most businesses in the U.S. expect us to work all but 2 weeks out of the year. I heard that in Germany you get 2 months minimum. Why is it that our culture has moved from living life for yourself and family (if you have one) to living to serve a company? I work hard for my employer, and expect them to work hard to make me happy in exchange for it. A lot of what they do is very superficial, and it is much cheaper to spend $200 on a ping pong table than it is to let all the employees have a month of vacation time. They only pay lip service to trying to satisfy the employees, and really just use it as an excuse to try to get us to work longer. We really need some reform in business in general so that the U.S. can rise up to the labor standards of civilized nations.
Other than that, I do think that there are some things that can be done to make us happier. I would think this applies to all industries, not just information technology. I think that since the I.T. field is supposed to be high tech, our jobs and business processes should be also. We have a lot of stuff on the web already for HR, Purchasing, Help Desks, etc in a lot of companies. Why can't the companies themselves live up to the potential of what we are giving them?
Mas vale cholo, que mal acompañado.
Anybody get a mirror site up before techies.com went kaput?
-Ando
I used to work for a company that had free beer on site. They (correctly) assumed that all 150 of us were adults and that we'd be responsible about it.
So what happens when your team puts in a really rough day of coding? The whole team can sit around and enjoy a mug of beer together. Gives everyone some time to relax and chat. And it's easier to get people together for this at work then to get people to go out to do this.
And when something good happens to the team? Same thing -- have a beer. Need to have a hard talk with someone? Do it over a brew. Seldom did anyone get stupid about it; it was usually just one shared mug before going home.
Heck, half the company would gather together Wednesday nights when they refilled the beer fridge to hang out. Camraderie? Heck yes. And brainstorming when you're relaxed and happy is WAY easier.
I can spell. I just can't type.
Right now all CEO's hate telecommuting.
and in fact telecommuters usually are rogues or "out of loop" people. I remember a couple of telecommuters we had, they'd show up at monthly meetings, and people would glare at them.
telecommuting is not going to happen, it doesn't fit with corperate culture. Now, telecommuting once or twice a week? (Like mondays and fridays ) that would rule.
It's all fun and games until someone gets an eye poked out, then it's just fun.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
This is why we have Perl, Cron and bad IRC/ICQ/whatever-messaging-system-you-use-to-talk
I dislike traffic. Who doesn't? So I moved. I went from an hour commute to a 5 minute walk...
Now that my boss knows I live so close to the office I doubt I'll ever get to telecommute.
It is nice to walk by all the commuters stuck in their cars though...
change me
This extended into travel where I was expected to work 24/7 (here, literally 24/7), because it was a "work trip" and (get this) "people in the real world don't get time off during a work trip". (Comp time was also an unknown concept.)
I'm much happier in my new job. I don't telecommute - ever. I get in before 8 and usually leave before 5 (so I know what evenings are like - and sunsets are so pretty!). I'll work extra hours and some weekends when there is *need* but manager apprehension based upon someone else's inability to set a workable schedule isn't a need - it's a failure in the system that should be held accountable before any cleanup is performed.
We'd be a LOT better off if we'd adopt this maxim and STICK TO IT: if your job requires more than 1/3rd of your time (i.e., 8 hours a day), then not enough resources are being placed on those tasks, and something needs to be fixed. Or, to put it another way, the company is placing an unfair burden on you (unless there is some kind of compensation to make up for it --- though I would also add unless the situation is clearly temporary).
If you break it down to 1/3rd sleep (which we need), 1/3rd work (which [most of us] need to get the $$$ for shelter, food, and entertainment) and 1/3rd time for us, it makes sense that our own time should equal or exceed the time we spend at work. I've found my live a LOT more fun and a LOT less stressed once I started guarding my own interests with the same loyalty that I guard my company's.
Anything less would be uncivilized. :-)
It's time to bring some Common Sense to this discussion.
Firstly what is a Techie? It's vague and self serving to the lowest denominator. It implies computer hobbyist, not a High Technology Professional. There is a world of difference between the IT Literate and Software, Network or Systems Engineer; it's like comparing a first aider to a Trauma surgeon.
It must be remembered that old style hierarchical & authoritarian managers are trained as lawyers and accountants, these are boring, repetitive and non productive tasks, that require massive amounts of money to motivate somebody to do them. PHB are therefore constrained to think in only these terms.
They don't get IT; and because of this they fear IT; they don't understand that High Tech Professionals are highly trained, self motivated individuals. IT is performed by people with passion and skill for the subject.
As a High Tech Professionals, we are quite capable of deciding when Telecommuting / Home working is appropriate. There are times when it is, just as there are times when Office Working is more appropriate. The idea that High Tech Professionals would spend all day playing Quake is as absurd as the idea that we should spend all day cutting code, or all day in meetings.
Telecommuting is not a perk its Common Sense Option to a High Tech Professional.
Tuesday: (looking in the mirror) -- Hmmm, perhaps I oughta telecommute until this grows out...
I work in Minneapolis doing your average IT guy stuff for a company thats core business is not IT related. All that stuff refers to people who work in the elite world of .com's and other companies with too much money. What about us who don't work in the valley, what kind of perks do we get? Nada, a paycheck and a slap on the back maybe even the occassional 'good job'. Now I know i'm not the only slashdotter who doesn't work for megadotcomdot.com. What kind of perks do you other guys get?
-redial
SHHHH!!! Keep it down! We don't want the boss to realize that we are really going to go to Las Vegas for the week, where the concubines are!
Mas vale cholo, que mal acompañado.
Too many companies are afraid of telecommuting. At mine, they say things like "on a case-by-case basis, where it makes sense." I can think of perhaps 8 people in my 70 person department that really should be in the office all the time, but how many have telecommuted? Zero. Why the fear? There are lots and lots of days where I feel like crap, and can't go to the office, but if I could just work at home, things would be great. WHY does a simple coder like me, who hardly interfaces with others anyways, need to go in more than once a week for meetings and general hob-nobbing?
I telecommute a few days a week.
I've got a company supplied PC to my specs, cable modem (maybe adsl soon). They also supply the pager and cell phone. I don't need a health club membership, the places I go don't work that way. So out of the top 5 I'm only out the car but they even offered a loan at a very good rate.
As far as the bottom 5, I've got a pool table, my t-shirts don't like drycleaning, I can't dance, and I don't like the idea of the company paying for a haircut.
One thing to consider is what happens to your "free stuff" when you change jobs. It looks like these perks may just be a another way to lock people into a position.
And I'm working right now...and next week I start a two week vacation.
string() : size(0), ptr(new char[1]) { ptr[0] = '\0'; }
and the first if in the assignment operator should better be
if (ptr != chrs)
Just 2c from a seasonsed professional with utter lack of humor.
they taste good too!
I am the BOOGER, Koo Koo Kachoo!!!
Perhaps I'm still in college and want someone else to pay for it (well, actually the government does, love financial aid), but really, why not tuition reimbursement? And not just for college/university but also for training and certificates. Most of my friends want to be sent to Sun's get-a-cert classes or Cisco's get-a-cert classes (um, for sysadmin and network admin, forget the actual names of classes).
I expect that most employers fear that after thier employees get certified, they'll split for a better job (which is probably true). Also, most companies seem to not want to hire part timers, which for a full time student like me, I can't work full time. But still.
I want tuition reimbursement!
I currently work for GameSpy, both as an admin on GameSpy Arcade, and site director of 3DActionPlanet. However, because I live in Canada, and GameSpy is in California, that is quite a daily commute. So, I telecommute, and I can tell you right now that I don't need ANY other perks.
;)
I find that when I'm at home, relaxed, listening to whatever I feel like listening too, my creativity flows like a faucet -- I'm a productive dynamo!
Plus, by telecommuting, all of my computer stuff is tax-deductable
------------
CitizenC
Yes, flexible hours are great. I arrive at work sometime between 8 and 11, and no one blinks, because I'm always there until I feel that I'm done for the day (7-10 PM, usually). However, even in a technical job (as mine most assuredly is), having face-to-face contact is critical. For the specific processor I work on, which has to communicate with two other processors (a DSP and another processor), a telecommuter writes the bulk of the code. However, I have to know the architecture inside out because things don't always work as designed. There are always problems and snags. I don't know how many times the silicon hasn't worked as planned or another module is doing something completely different than what is discussed in the specification. I need to be in the office, with soldering irons, a logic analyzer and hard proof of what the problem is to demonstrate where the problem is (I am VLSI group's worst nightmare :), and work out a solution in day long brainstorming sessions involving 10 other people and a whiteboard.
This is stuff that simply can't be done (in a reasonable timeframe) via e-mail or conference calls. The dynamics of face-to-face contact cannot be webcast.
--Tim
basically it depends who you work for.
i guess everywhere old economy companies won't have any of this 'techie extra stuff', while start-ups think they have to follow the california star example.
however, we do have a distinct southeast asian flavour:
1- high profile startup:
grrls are okay, but outside the office - they'll bill the company;
splendid restaurant visits are all right, boss picks up the tab;
everyone has a cellphone anyway, so nothing at that end;
arrive after lunch, stay till dinner;
play quake/doom/etc. on the office LAN, but let the boss win if he finds out about it;
2- low profile start-up
nothing; they are eating the paint off the wall and the marketing gang gets all the goodies
3- old economy dot-com entrant (dot-cummer?)
nothing; marketing and admin spends everything on golf tours and working holidays;
i'm lucky in that respect, as i was here before the whole craze started and could write my own ticket.
my package includes:
- i set my own expense account and don't need to account for it [ie. i can blow the cash as i see fit] but am expected to be reasonable about it;
- free ticket for hardware, software, gadgets as long as i can justify them [afterwards i get to take them home and keep them]
- i come and go as i please, have no 'working hours' per say and work when and where i want [as long as the job gets done]
- workstation and net access, phone, utilities, etc. at home is being paid for
- i get shares issued after the second, third, fifth and tenth year at no cost
dreamjob? well, sort of. added benefit is that i can oversee the production plants of all major IT companies from my window and get to mess around with new stuff [confidential of course] long before it's available anywhere [like Pentium 4 processors in May 2000]
- i can't justify grrls, cause my wife'd kill me...
I almost got DSL, but somehow GTE (now Verizon) said I was too far (even after the first test) due to coils, etc. I can't get cable modem service. IDSL is too slow (144kb/sec max) for my needs, difficult to set up, etc. Too bad I cannot get a T1 :(.
Does any companies pay for a T1 at home for work?
Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
1) The perception that employees are complete slackers who would sleep the day away and turn in a page or two of work every two weeks...
2) If deals were worked out with coders that 1) here's your computer and T1 line and VPN 2) here's your workload, including deadlines and deliverables and specs 3) Complete said work by said date on your own time, and we're all happy... then managers might be held to the same standard.
3) If you work with sensitive information or with hardware that companies would get VERY nervous with people leaving them just in their homes (employee's house gets broken into, the prototype is stolen, etc) forget it..
But the BIGGEST reason is...
Dear God, managers would have to MANAGE. They'd have to sit down and spec stuff out, do their jobs etc. rather than get paid to walk around scowling to try and raise efficiency, while having endless "meetings" and wearing suits to look important.
--- Jump!! Fire!! Bullet time!! - Lego version of the Matrix
My girlfriend works, so she'd get me up in the morning with a coffee (like she does anyway, bless her).
I'd (probably) have to log on to my companies network by a fixed time, so thats not a problem.
Telecommuting would be the best thing that could happen to my social life.
Infact, convincing my friends to leave me alone while I'm working would be the most difficult bit.
Finnally, SHUT THE F*CK UP. Its people like you that scare the PHBs off of telecommuting. They assume whe are all as undisiplined as you, and need watching to make sure we work. Well I don't, I can get my work done on time without micromanagement. Don't ruin it for the rest of us.
Thad
Thad
"If I want to be social, I'll get together with a friend in the evening, or head down to my favorite bar for a beer or three."
/etc).
I so agreee. Why don't my other cow orkers get this?
There's a lady on the other side of my cube wall who likes to talk. Alot. She alone must raise the temperature in the office a good 5 degrees every day. She'll talk about her kids, her dogs, other people, Jerry Springer, just whatever comes to mind. She drones on for half of forever.
And they say geeks have difficulty in social situations. Pah! Talking for the sole purpose of hearing your own voice is far worse than having nothing to say (IMHO, as per, YMMV, IANAL,
Thank Goddess for my headphones and trip hop.
censorship is a form of noise, which actively seeks to drown out content with silence - Crash Culligan
Get rid of the mess hall the ping-pong table, even the water cooler
#include bool drinkBeer(); int main() { while(true){ Coders are ");
"If you can't beat them, arrange to have them beaten."
-- George Carlin
"It takes many nails to build a crib, but one screw to fill it."
Okay, where do I sign, I wanna be there. I am not a coward!
No, this is not spam telling you how to get rich quick stuffing envelopes.
There's more to it, but one of the essential things you need to know is how to find clients. It's easy to do, using the web. Please read:
Market Yourself - Tips for High-Tech Consultants
A business tips from GoingWare's Bag of Programming Tricks. You'll find other helpful articles there on the business and technique of computer programming.
-- Could you use my software consulting serv
Yeah, but ping pong is cheaper and easier to manage than remote access and working from home. You know of course that if you can't watch your people, they will goof off. Also, by providing trinkets such as ping pong, etc. it gives the appearance they are being modern, without actually changing anything.
Agreed. I have tried to work on independent work at home. There are just too many distractions. Counterstrike, pornography, and lack of social contact are all very good reasons to go to work.
... sigh ...
I don't think that I could handle working at home all the time. However, a few days a month, maybe once or twice a week would be amazing. Imagine being able to stay up watching the sixers trounce (thats right... TROUNCE) the Knicks, then waking up at a nice leisurely 8:45 and logging in.
And for those of us lucky enough to have girlfriends / boyfriends / wives / husbands / whatnot, the extra quality time couldn't be bad. Imagine taking a break from some nice coding for a little romp in the bed.
Captain_Frisk
Not only that, the sales and marketing types have expense accounts. When I used to work for a big company, I'd love for a salesperson to come begging to me for support on some product or other. Can you say "Steak and chardonney for lunch"?
Our company ended up buying a foosball table which is currently dominated by our team. Since we play everyday at lunch or even afterwork, everyone has their own style of play which makes us better than average.
We ended having a season and playoffs and true geek fashion built a PHP/mySql web site to track stats. (We'll probably open-source the foosball stats program on souceforge eventually). If our managers can't find us in our cubes, they'll find us in the Foosball "Arena".
Also, a while ago, they asked if we wanted to go out for dinner as celebration for our dedication. Of course being so busy we never went out for our team lunches or dinners, so we figured we would be more productive with 19" monitors.
-- ladies and gentlemen we are floating in space!
As many places as exit signs are in large red lettering its no wonder.
My version of telecommuting is similar with a few key differences:
2 more words: Boxer Shorts
I'll wear the same boxers for a couple days.
Lunch = I can do Laundry
Constant snacking / laundry ever couple months.
Bed Head and I don't care
I like to take bubble baths a couple times a day.
I dont have to see anyone from sales and marketing!
I don't know any of my neighbors and I've been living here for almost half a year.
Whatever.
How I would love to have a pool table at work! Or even a ping-pong table, though I'm terrible at the game.
And about the last thing I want my employer to do is supply me ("free!") with everything that would allow my job to invade my private life--the broadband access, the free PC, the cell phone.
hyacinthus.
There are some disadvantages to telecommuting, though, which people seem to gloss over. To whit:
- Out of sight, out of mind: I'm not just talking about being able to goof off all day . A lot of places work on the basis of office politics; like every other social situation, it's inevitable. You're not going to be thought of in as good a light if you're never around, and though you may not care right now, you will when the person who doesn't get as much done get the promotion you wanted because they were at the office every day, and stayed in the head of their boss. I'm not saying this is good, or bad, merely that it is.
- Knowledge sharing: I've found (as someone who is the first to admit that I don't even know a lil' bit of everything) that a good deal of what I've picked up has been odd random geeky junk from being able to wander into the other programmers' cubes and gossipping. Ditto for weird conversations at lunch. And it's a lot easier to help someone out (and, in turn, be helped) when you have a physical presence.
- Gripability: This is more important than it may seem. If I'm having a tough time with something outside of work, it's a lot easier to get a little sympathy if I'm there to whine in person. Ditto with saying, "well, I've gotta skip out tomorrow afternoon, but I'll make it up during the rest of the week."
I'm not against the idea of telecommuting, just that it's not a good all-the-time solution. I find that most of the really kick-ass programmers around me show up two days a week; it's enough time to ask and be asked questions, let people know you're alive, transfer all that weird stuff which never gets documented but is vital to getting your product to compile correctly, etc.
Some of this may not matter to everyone who is expected to work 70+ hours a week anyhow. In this case, the best thing I can say is that you need to show up to work, quit, and find a better job. Never discount the fact that your job/company/chosen locale just sucks, and all the telecommuting in the world isn't going to change what the real problems are.
If a woodchuck could, would it be too lazy to?
A friend of mine runs classes teaching geeks how to interact with women. Odd thing is even at 5 grand a week she still gets business than she can deal with.
I agree with you on telecomuting being a good thing. Use it myself a lot ;)
But there is a fundamental problem in project oriented telecomuting, like in your example with a two months porject. If it takes you two working month to complete it, sure no employer would care to much how you get there.
The problem is when that project (as so many others), turns out to be more complicated than planned.
What if it takes four month of work to complete due to an unforceable complication?
Now the trouble begins!
How can the employer tell the difference between the worker being layzy and creating/presenting complications to save him from the fact that he quaked away the first two months and a real complication?
This is where the cubicles enter the scene!
If they know you been working hard on this, it's easier for you to get the extra time or assistance to complete the job
Otherwise you easally end up in an unplesent negotioation situation, I've been ther in both roles, it isn't funny for either part...
Heh. The place I was it, sales and marketing = older guys -- not my personal idea of cuties. Now the gal at the front desk. . . that's a different story =)
---
Let's have a hypothetical dialogue:
He's thinking, what a hard worker you are! If you can put in a month of 16 hour days, why not two? Why not a whole bunch? (That's why this will never fly -- nothing to do with whether he knows you're BSing)
"If you look 'round the table and can't tell who the sucker is, it's you." -- Quiz Show
Getting folks to work together smoothly & efficiently is more then sticking them in a series of nearby workspaces and forcing them to attend the same meetings. Rather it involves a series of techniques that include lubricating the social processes that lead to effective group brainstorming, problem-resolution, pride-in-product & esprit de corps. With these in place management can expect greater creativity, less conflict, higher productivity, improved quality and less staff turnover. Without these social underpinnings the opposite occurs.
Table-Tennis (forbid we ever call it "Ping-Pong"!) , Nerf shoot-outs & the occasionial game of pick-up basketball offer the staff opportunities to interact together in fun ways that both reward them with pleasurable/refreshing breaks from their work & opportunities to improve their interpersonal relationships. Research has consistantly shown that folks who play well together work well together & are happier about it.
That these are seen as "perks" is interesting but ultimately irrelevant. They're not supplied in order to reward individual employeees but rather to constructively improve the overall work environment. If it wasn't games & toys supplied it would be other team-building activities like shared challenges, unusual situations or other joint social activities (preferably involving groups eating together - shared meals are a powerful bonding activity.)
If all of this sounds rather calculating and artificial remember it's no more then so then the company evaluating your worth, loyalty, other opportunities, etc. & determining how much of a bonus to give you. It also the same calculation staff use when deciding to jump ship or not.
Indeed it many cases this engineering should be appreciated. Most folks can recount unpleasent experiences with workplaces where folks didn't function well together & stress became excessive, relationships were unpleasent & the general tenor was not one they enjoyed. If some effort is taken to promote a positive workplace then all benefit from it; employer & employees alike.
By the way, this isn't all squishy HR-drivel. I'm a Tech Manager who long ago learned that keeping staff happy & productive is more then giving them clear direction & hot toys but also making sure their jobs are rewarding & the environment convivial. If it comes down to my buying a half-dozen folks the latest cellphone-du-jure or a office pinball machine they can all bang on, singly & together then I'm going for the most good (for the company) for the greatest number. The phones would make a few happy for a short while when they're off-site. The pinball gets more of them involved with eachother & out of their cubes for some cobweb-clearing sessions that just might become brainstorming sessions.
I don't read ACs: If a post isn't worth so much as a nom de plume to its author then I wont bother either.
I would definitely ask for the entire series of the greatest japanimation ever, Ping Pong Club. For those of you that haven't seen this, it's like Southpark meets Japan.
Sorry...just got a little excited.
bye,
-jimbo
These people must be workaholics (or those surveys were answered by the higher-ups). The last thing I would ask me employer for are tools so that he can expect me to work every waking hour. Home PCs, home Internet connections, and mobile communication devices seem like a way for companies to say, "Your work day does not end when you go home. You have the tools you need, and we can chat via cell phone."
I could not justify my existence if I were a turkey farmer. Would I terminate myself? Undoubtably, yes.
free car? free internet? I thought telecommuting was a perk for the employee. The PHB lets someone work for home as a favour and they want more? seems greedy to me.
>> I don't have to play ping pong with that indian guy from our european office that keeps kicking my ass!
> I find it ignorant of you to imply that Indian people are naturally better ping-pong players. I once worked at a company with a ping-pong table,
> and it was obvious that Chinese people are the true ping-pong geniuses.
Well, I'm not so good at ping-pong....and if I telecommuted, I wouldn't be stuck at the office getting angry that nobody ever lets me play ping pong or foosball.
You may be a dreamer, but I'm The Dreamer, the definite article you might say!
High School/Jr.High
// bring in the master library
// bring in my interfaces
// some code related header files
// needed typelibs
// when the object count goes to zero, stop the server
// Initialize the OLE libraries
// Initialize the OLE libraries
// wait on an event to stop
// revoke and release the class object
// Tell OLE we are going away.
/* 2573F891-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820
/* 2573F890-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820
// get object path
// get print string
// Initialize the OLE libraries
// print a string out
// Tell OLE we are going away.
.seg "data"
.seg "text"
.proc 04
.global _main
.seg "data1"
.ascii "Hello, World\012\0"
.seg "text"
.seg "data1"
.ascii "Hello, World\012\0"
.seg "text"
.seg "data"
10 PRINT "HELLO WORLD"
20 END
First year in College
program Hello(input, output)
begin
writeln('Hello World');
end.
Senior year in College
(defun hello
(print
(cons 'Hello (list 'World))))
New professional
#include
void main(void)
{
char *message[] = {"Hello ", "World"};
int i;
for(i = 0; i < 2; ++i)
printf("%s", message[i]);
printf("\n");
}
Seasoned professional
#include
#include
class string
{
private:
int size;
char *ptr;
public:
string() : size(0), ptr(new char('\0')) {}
string(const string &s) : size(s.size)
{
ptr = new char[size + 1];
strcpy(ptr, s.ptr);
}
~string()
{
delete [] ptr;
}
friend ostream &operator << (ostream & const string &
string &operator=(const char *);
};
ostream &operator << (ostream &stream, const string &s)
{
return(stream << s.ptr);
}
string &string::operator=(const char *chrs)
{
if (this != &chrs)
{
delete [] ptr;
size = strlen(chrs);
ptr = new char[size + 1];
strcpy(ptr, chrs);
}
return(*this);
}
int main()
{
string str;
str = "Hello World";
cout << str << endl;
return(0);
}
Master Programmer
[
uuid(2573F8F4-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820)
]
library LHello
{
importlib("actimp.tlb");
importlib("actexp.tlb");
#include "pshlo.idl"
[
uuid(2573F8F5-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820)
]
cotype THello
{
interface IHello;
interface IPersistFile;
};
};
[
exe,
uuid(2573F890-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820)
]
module CHelloLib
{
importheader();
importheader();
importheader();
importheader("pshlo.h");
importheader("shlo.hxx");
importheader("mycls.hxx");
importlib("actimp.tlb");
importlib("actex.tlb");
importlib("thlo.tl");
[
uuid(2573F891-CFEE-101A-9A9F-00AA00342820),
aggregatable
]
coclass CHello
{
cotype THello;
};
};
#include "ipfix.hxx"
extern HANDLE hEvent;
class CHello : public CHelloBase
{
public:
IPFIX(CLSID_CHello);
CHello(IUnknown *pUnk);
~CHello();
HRESULT __stdcall PrintSz(LPWSTR pwszString);
private:
static int cObjRef;
};
#include
#include
#include
#include
#include "thlo.h"
#include "pshlo.h"
#include "shlo.hxx"
#include "mycls.hxx"
int CHello:cObjRef = 0;
CHello::CHello(IUnknown *pUnk) : CHelloBase(pUnk)
{
cObjRef++;
return;
}
HRESULT __stdcall CHello::PrintSz(LPWSTR pwszString)
{
printf("%ws\n", pwszString);
return(ResultFromScode(S_OK));
}
CHello::~CHello(void)
{
cObjRef--;
if( cObjRef == 0 )
PulseEvent(hEvent);
return;
}
#include
#include
#include "pshlo.h"
#include "shlo.hxx"
#include "mycls.hxx"
HANDLE hEvent;
int _cdecl main(
int argc,
char * argv[]
) {
ULONG ulRef;
DWORD dwRegistration;
CHelloCF *pCF = new CHelloCF();
hEvent = CreateEvent(NULL, FALSE, FALSE, NULL);
CoInitiali, NULL);
CoInitializeEx(NULL, COINIT_MULTITHREADED);
CoRegisterClassObject(CLSID_CHello, pCF, CLSCTX_LOCAL_SERVER,
REGCLS_MULTIPLEUSE, &dwRegistration);
WaitForSingleObject(hEvent, INFINITE);
CoRevokeClassObject(dwRegistration);
ulRef = pCF->Release();
CoUninitialize();
return(0); }
extern CLSID CLSID_CHello;
extern UUID LIBID_CHelloLib;
CLSID CLSID_CHello = {
> */
0x2573F891,
0xCFEE,
0x101A,
{ 0x9A, 0x9F, 0x00, 0xAA, 0x00, 0x34, 0x28, 0x20 }
};
UUID LIBID_CHelloLib = {
> */
0x2573F890,
0xCFEE,
0x101A,
{ 0x9A, 0x9F, 0x00, 0xAA, 0x00, 0x34, 0x28, 0x20 }
};
#include
#include
#include
#include
#include
#include "pshlo.h"
#include "shlo.hxx"
#include "clsid.h"
int _cdecl main(
int argc,
char * argv[]
) {
HRESULT hRslt;
IHello *pHello;
ULONG ulCnt;
IMoniker * pmk;
WCHAR wcsT[_MAX_PATH];
WCHAR wcsPath[2 * _MAX_PATH];
wcsPath[0] = '\0';
wcsT[0] = '\0';
if( argc > 1) {
mbstowcs(wcsPath, argv[1], strlen(argv[1]) + 1);
wcsupr(wcsPath);
}
else {
fprintf(stderr, "Object path must be specified\n");
return(1);
}
if(argc > 2)
mbstowcs(wcsT, argv[2], strlen(argv[2]) + 1);
else
wcscpy(wcsT, L"Hello World");
printf("Linking to object %ws\n", wcsPath);
printf("Text String %ws\n", wcsT);
hRslt = CoInitializeEx(NULL, COINIT_MULTITHREADED);
if(SUCCEEDED(hRslt)) {
hRslt = CreateFileMoniker(wcsPath, &pmk);
if(SUCCEEDED(hRslt))
hRslt = BindMoniker(pmk, 0, IID_IHello, (void **)&pHello);
if(SUCCEEDED(hRslt)) {
pHello->PrintSz(wcsT);
Sleep(2000);
ulCnt = pHello->Release();
}
else
printf("Failure to connect, status: %lx", hRslt);
CoUninitialize();
}
return(0);
}
Apprentice Hacker
#!/usr/local/bin/perl
$msg="Hello, world.\n";
if ($#ARGV >= 0) {
while(defined($arg=shift(@ARGV))) {
$outfilename = $arg;
open(FILE, "$gt;" . $outfilename) || die "Can't write $arg:
> $!\n";
print (FILE $msg);
close(FILE) || die "Can't close $arg: $!\n";
}
} else {
print ($msg);
}
1;
Experienced Hacker
#include
#define S "Hello, World\n"
main(){exit(printf(S) == strlen(S) ? 0 : 1);}
Seasoned Hacker
% cc -o a.out ~/src/misc/hw/hw.c
% a.out
Guru Hacker
% cat
Hello, world.
^^D
AXE System programmer
LL0:
_main:
!#PROLOGUE# 0
sethi %hi(LF26),%g1
add %g1,%lo(LF26),%g1
save %sp,%g1,%sp
!#PROLOGUE# 1
L30:
L32:
set L32,%o0
call _strlen,1 > nop
mov %o0,%i5 > set L30,%o0
call _printf,1
nop > cmp %o0,%i5
bne L2000000
nop
mov 0,%o0
b L2000001
nop
L2000000:
mov 0x1,%o0
L2000001:
call _exit,1
nop
LE26:
ret
restore
LF26 = -96
LP26 = 96
LST26 = 96
LT26 = 96
0000000 0103 0107 0000 0060 0000 0020 0000 0000
0000020 0000 0030 0000 0000 0000 0054 0000 0000
0000040 033f ffff 8200 63a0 9de3 8001 1100 0000
0000060 9012 2000 4000 0000 0100 0000 ba10 0008
0000100 1100 0000 9012 2000 4000 0000 0100 00 ba10 0008
0000100 1100 0000 9012 2000 4000 0000 0100 0000
0000120 80a2 001d 1280 0005 0100 0000 9010 2000
0000140 1080 0003 0100 0000 9010 2001 4000 0000
0100 0000 81c7 e008 81e8 0000 0000 0000
0000200 4865 6c6c 6f2c 2057 6f72 6c64 0a00 4865
0000220 6c6c 6f2c 2057 6f72 6c64 0a00 0000 0000
0000240 0000 000c 0000 0608 0000 006e 0000 0010
0000260 0000 060b 0000 006e 0000 0014 0000 0286
0000300 ffff ffec 0000 0020 0000 0608 0000 0060
0000320 0000 0024 0000 060b 0000 0060 0000 0028
0000340 0000 0186 ffff ffd8 0000 004c 0000 0386
0000360 ffff ffb4 0000 0004 0500 0000 0000 0000
0000400 0000 000a 0100 0000 0000 0000 0000 0012
0000420 0100 0000 0000 0000 0000 001a 0100 0000
0000440 0000 0000 0000 0020 5f6d 6169 6e00 5f70
0000460 7269 6e74 6600 5f73 7472 6c65 6e00 5f65
0000500 7869 7400
0000504
% axe_generate -f system.uhdl
Application 'Exchange' generated
2324042350000000 source code lines
No Errors detected.
Hardware retrieval...done OK
Certification Test...done OK
Packing..............done OK
Delivery.............done OK
Application 'Exchange' delivered to customer
3456000 bytes/sec.
End processing, 2345 seconds.
Ultra high level programmer
system.uhdl :
SYSTEM
CREATE ScreenWin
SIZE 20000000/Unit=One
DESTINATION Order.dest[One]
OUTPUT CHARACTER['Hello world']
END
END
New Manager
10 PRINT "HELLO WORLD"
20 END
Middle Manager
mail -s "Hello, world." bob@b12
Bob, could you please write me a program that prints
"Hello, world."? I need it by tomorrow.
^^D
Senior Manager
% zmail all
I need a "Hello, world." program by this afternoon.
Chief Executive
% message
message: Command not found
% pm
pm: Command not found
% letter
letter: Command not found.
% mail
To: ^^X ^^F ^^C
> help mail
help: Command not found.
what
what: Command not found
need help
need: Command not found
damn!
!: Event unrecognized
exit
exit: Unknown
quit
%
% logout
Getting 8 hours of sleep is tough! Do people really do this? I get between 5.5 - 6 hours on average, and it's not because of work. I strictly work 8 hours a day, but the problem is free time. If you count an hour out of the day for commuting, maybe an hour or so of waking up time, an hour of handling daily errands, that leaves you with 5 (!!) hours of free time, out of 8 hours in your model. That's not enough time to spend with your family, watch X-Files, and hack some code. And I'm not being funny here. If I go to sleep for more than 6 hours, I feel as if I'm wasting my time. I'm missing out on something that I could be doing. By only sleeping for 6 hours, I can read the latest O'Reilly book for 2 hours that day. Does anybody else feel this way?
Asking for rational management is nuts. You are talking about turning the business world upside down and inside out with ideas like that.
. . . until Diablo 2 came out and my co-workers started performing satanic rituals on the foosball table.
"If I were to ask you a hypothetical question, what would you like it to be about?"
You know that is really insulting. The problem with a lot of men, and I don't just say geeks because in my experience geeks are nicer than average men. Is that they don't think women are people too. Well we are. Just like you. And I find your hooker and concubine etc...postings very sexist. If you think it is "safe" to talk about women like this here...you are wrong, there are women here reading this too. But that's probably why women don't like this industry, there are quite q few men out there that don't like women and think women are stupid. Not based on any actual facts of course. But as a woman I can tell you right now that most women think men are the ones that are stupid, pretty much as a rule. I mean you guys are supposed to be so friggin smart and you act like 11 year olds. Maybe you are...? I mean face it, men just don't have the two halves of their brains connected like we women do, that's why we are smarter and you guys are just clueless most of the time. And if I had to deal with people like the ones posting here...I think it would be worth 5 grand a week and would actually be EASIER BEING A HOOKER! At least a hooker wouldn't have to act like she respected you in any way.
Next you're going to tell me that these people want to actually be PAID for their work, instead of getting stock options....
I swear.. people are just too greedy now a days...
Information is the catalyst for revolution
And THe BIGGEST reason of all
"Science is about ego as much as it is about discovery and truth " - I said it, so sue me.
As a geek who has not worked in an office in a year I think you may want to view telecommuting from a different perspective. First & formost it only works for those who want it and build their lives to make it grand. But addressing your points:
Rise @ 11AM... At 1PM... daily workload finished by 10PM...; This is the sign of a person on a schedule in an office, I do not have a daily schedule, only goals (you must set and accomplish them but not on a daily clock). I am as likely to be working @2AM as 2PM, Tuesday or Sunday, but it is my choice and it may be different it everyday, I choose the variety.
...havent got dressed...; maybe, maybe not what is the difference? I do maintain hygiene, for I am civilized.
seen the sun...; The sun does shine at my house, where do you live? Most offices supply sunshine in long round tubes...
not spoken to another...; I have my email, my telephone, and best of all, my wife at the next desk (NOTE: she also is a telecommuter geek and this requires a special marriage relationship [we are not sure but after 21 years we think it may work]).
...dont see anyone... distractions...; a cell...; Well, let me tell you about my "cell": I live in a hardwood forest (125' trees), overlooking an 8 acre lake, and the house was designed by me for the very purpose of an automated home and workplace. I am distracted though - by wild turkeys pecking on my window (2' from my face, my office window is at ground level), and by deer who play 25' from my desk, the squirrels that never stop, and then there are the water birds (Canadian geese, mallards, blue heron), tree birds (cardinals, jays, & woodpeckers), and the predators (hawks, buzzards, and eagles). I don't take breaks though, because it only takes 30 seconds to be on vacation, far away from the world. Granted I don't hear the gossip (but do I need to?), but I know both the Fedex & UPS guys name's and they are not in a hurry to leave when they delivery here!!
I know I not typical but this situation wasn't just luck, I made it happen and I make it work!!!
domebot...carpet-denim!
Classes. Not classes in any languages, mind you, but social interaction classes. And in my experience with a lot of coders, classes in showering. Maybe then they'll be able to get women. Although, that might just be the downfall of the industry. Damn that John Romero baggin' Killcreek, gave these long haired jackholes false hope. Sharkey
www.badassmofo.com
Comments pertaining to cron jobs are nieve, and irresponsable.
Thad
Thad
Thad
- Requirements gathering is important and must be done first, not in the middle
- Meeting with end-users and domain experts is vital
- A user interface is not something tacked on at the end
- Changing requirements means changing deadlines
And not to pick only on management, but for those of us who are employees, why do we put up with:- Changing requirements without change in deadlines
- 70, 80, 90+ hour weeks
- Inflexible work hours
- Stupid rules and politics
Why don't we just leave for a better job? Yes, not everyone can get up and leave, but as a former consultant I've seen far too many people who could easily find another job with a better environment but don't.I'll gladly work at even a semi-rational company and buy my own coffee and soda.
Pedro
Pedro
----
The Insomniac Coder
I thought it said "Coders say yes to telecommuting and no to high pings".
As one who has worked from home for a year, I can say that it definitely is the best thing that has happened to my career. I went from a 70 minute commute to working in my basement office. We have weekly meetings (~2hr) and occasionally others.
In fact, we have a distributed company where most employees do not work from the office. We either work from home or are on the road. Files are centrally located so they can be accessed from anywhere.
However, it is NOT for everyone. You must be self-motivated, driven, resourceful, focused, and trustworthy.
PRO's
Flexibility -- Take the kids to the doctors if needed and make up the hours later in the evening. Get up later and work late if that is more productive.
Efficiency -- Work when the the ideas flow. Don't bang your head against a wall for hours just because you are at the office.
Atmosphere -- Fewer interuptions. Close to the fridge. Don't have to listen to 5 other people's choice in music.
CON's
Consuming -- Easier to put in WAY more time because the office is right here.
Solitude -- Sometimes it is nice to discuss problems with peers, face to face.
All in all, it is the best arrangement for me. And the company gets more out of me without it hurting too much.
I know, all of us want company perks like telecommuting and the like. But I've never known a tech that wouldn't forsake things like that for an extra $40,000 or $50,000 in his pocket.
The place I work at now is terrific - great people, good policies, and we get to have a lot more fun than most companies allow. But imagine if someone said "You're going back to the 9-5, shirt-and-tie, cubicle-dwelling lifestyle. And we're going to double your pay." Would I take it? You betcha.
steve
Oh, you're not stuck, you're just unable to let go of the onion rings.
Flex-time truly is a wonderful thing. A number of other coworkers like to work a bit later. It's generally not a problem, because there are enough hours in the day to meet with them, as needed. I don't mind staying later if I'm in an interesting conversation. :-)
/ \
\ / ASCII ribbon campaign for peace
x
/ \
I thought it was pretty neat when our senior manager negotiated a better deal at a health club for us. W****C** didn't offer to pay for it, but at least the manager was trying to look out for us.
There is no problem which cannot be resolved by the judicious use of firepower.
I just want a nice monkey at the office to swap boards and give filthy looks to the non-tech ppl, and I can sit on my sofa, with my thinkpad, and keep www.mtve.com running nice and smoothly. Oh, and FedEx'd blue M&Ms every hour, on the hour.
The Slashdot Paradox: "100% Overrated"
To me, one of the greatest things is really flexible hours.
As long as you make your meetings and you are fairly consistent and you do your work well and prove to be doing what your being paid to do I really like the idea of real flexible hours.
Being able to come in at 10 or 11 and work into the wee hours of the night, especially when you are already putting a 70 hour work week how can anyone complain about you wanting to come in a lil late or early?
That is how it is at our company granted there are only a few of us we get our jobs done weve all worked some crazy hours, and we never get in trouble for being in at 9:30, or 10 some days especially around deadline time when you are working so many hours, its quite dificult to keep up being up that early and staying mentally focused working so many hours without decent amounts of sleep
For some things and huge companies where timing is everything its important to be in on time, but with software rarely does your day to day presence unless dealing with a *lot* of clients make much of a difference. I think if a company wants to hire someone that should be something to look at... ?
Well I enjoy it and I know it makes me a lot more at ease about working insane hours
Jeremy
Yep, I'll take the telecommuting.
I don't need any other perk. I need to get an assignment, e-mail it in, and have money appear at regular intervals in my bank account.
Make it the right amount of money and I'll buy my own car, my own pool table, in my own house, which could be anywhere I fancy living.
Under those conditions I'll be happy as the proverbial pig in shit and do damn fine work to boot.
The company would save the money on my parking space, cubicle, electric use etc.
Sounds like a deal to me.
I'll happily pay for most "perks" out of my own pocket, thankuveddymuch, if I am pulling a decent wage. What I want is my desired work schedule. I am flatly uninterested in working "full time" (as defined in the US). I don't want to work 40/50 (40hrs/week X 50wks/yr). I want ideally to work 35/40.
For all that companies like to think of themselves as being competitive at hiring, I have yet to find one un-rigid enough to think that minimal distance outside the box.
-*- Any technology indistinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced -*-
"The question of whether a computer can think is no more interesting than that of whether a submarine can swim" -EWD
I'm surprised by the number of people bashing telecommuting, claiming "I wouldn't like it," or the harping the conspiracy theory of getting people to work more.
The trend reports are all well and good, but predicting X million telecommuters by 200X makes people think that everyone is going to working out of their homes in the future. This is NOT the case.
Telecommuting is not for everyone. If you're an extrovert or other social creature, stay at the office. (And don't you dare draw a corollary, that telecommuters are social outcasts.) If you don't like telecommuting, don't do it, but don't shoot down the option for people who it is good for.
Now for my experience: I recently moved 200 miles out of the metro. I work for a company that values people and their work/life balance. My boss is incrediblely supportive of the arrangements.
My drive to work is 3.5 hours each way, but I only have to do that once every 3-4 weeks. Even if I had to come in every other week, it's the same amount of time in the car as living in the city. Plus, since my official place of work is home, I get to submit mileage.
As for being out of touch for knowledge sharing and networking, I'm in better contact with people than I was at the office. Instant Messaging is a crucial tool to combat this.
I keep regular work hours. By the time 5pm rolls around, I've been coding all day, and I'm ready to QUIT. When you're so productive without the distractions, you don't need the long hours to get the same quantity of work done.
At the office, lunch was a productive time - I'd eat hunched at my desk glad that the phone and email deluge tapered off. Then I'd keep working all afternoon and wonder why I feel burnt out. At home, I get a good meal, and a wonderful mental break that prepares me for the afternoon efforts. If it's nice weather, I can take the dogs for a walk in the woods.
If you want telecommuting, pursue it. If you don't, stay out of the way of the people that do. It's paradise for some, but not the end of the world for others.
My company was all set to allow the employees to telecommute once or twice a week, but then out of the blue they said they needed to work out a few things. One being how to measure performance, I figure as long as I get my projects done on time what difference does it make how much I get done at work or at home. In all reality I get more work done at home since their are far less interuptions. Anyway it's been about six months and they still are stalling, any ideas out there on how to convince my management that they can trust us?
Techies want perks that are worth more. Just like everyone else.
End of story
managers...why god invented purgatory
The 1st rule of ping pong club is don't talk about ping pong club!
The 2nd rule of ping pong club is don't talk about ping pong club!
The 3rd rule of ping pong club is that everyone has to play ping pong!
(I suppose the same is true for chess club.)
-Scott scott@surrealistic.org
Hey man, I have a friend who works at a company with a ping-pong table, and he loves it! He plays it all day long! So he's certainly more produc... oh, wait...
"In a recent techies.com compensation survey, tech services and equipment took three of the five top spots for best fringe benefits." It's not the three out of five that surprise me, it's the other two. So far it's not phrased as a bad thing by any reports, as is reasonable. It's good that techies are so fascinated by what they do that they'd choose more of the same (ie. technology) over entertainment (nice headline from techies.com, "Techies want more than entertainment"). I'm glad that everyone's passion for their work shows through in this survey.
That would be grand. How many hours do you spend a week driving to work? I can almost see where I work from my apt, and i still waste probably 50 minutes a day travelling to and from. For those people who spend an hour or two each way? I can't imagine how someone would make it through the week. Of course Telecommuting is key. As for free dance lessons.... how many programmers out there know how to tango? We don't dance for a good reason.
Capain_Frisk
Can someone compile these all together as one big packaged file so you can choose which one to run! That would be 1337!
Oh wow, that is one of the funniest posts I have seen!!! I was dying, thanks for the time you spent on that one. I liked the highest level manager the best! G
Jeremy