Open Source is Not a Career Path

codermarc writes ""If you're getting into open source because you see it as a career path, you're doing something wrong." It's not that Linux creator Linus Torvalds thinks open-source programmers should work for peanuts (he doesn't), but rather that they should be properly motivated. Call it software with a soul, if you like. Only the truly passionate need apply."

Comments

Retards.

[I'm a racist.]

I agree with you quite a bit. A lot of Slashdotters live in a fantasy world.

There are people who get PhD's in the natural sciences NOT because they enjoy their academic field of study, but because they know they will make more money with a PhD than a lesser degree.

In general, the PhD is the entry level degree into the field (low level technician jobs notwithstanding since I'd say they're on the periphery of the fields). On top of that, your typical newly minted PhD doesn't make much ($40-50k/yr) as a postdoc. You can quite easily get that with just a bachelor's degree (possibly even a bullshit associate's or certificate of some sort). Even as a tenure track professor most don't earn all that much, especially when you consider the education and hours that have been put in.

In fact, I can't think of one PhD, working off of a single source of income in academia, that is making much money. Sure, taking your PhD to Wall Street to be a quant will get you decent cash, but that isn't really academia anymore. There are others, who have additional sources of income (consulting, books, companies, patents).

prostitutes (indeed, prostitutes in Nevada have been known to work for about 3-4 years, then retire for life with over $1 million in income for their time in bed).

I think that the stories of the retiring hookers are a bit exaggerated, as I'm sure most of them do not really save/invest well. Some do, of course, but I'd think they're in the minority. Besides that, $1million is really a pretty bare minimum for retirement (throwing off only $50k/yr in interest).

In reality, getting into a field for a love of it is a luxury few can afford, and (I think) pretty much only simpletons can enjoy. Anyone who is doing any IT support/administration (like some people here), and claims to love it, must have some mild form of retardation. I do what many people would consider interesting stuff, and I even release some open source software (funded by NIH grants). And, although I get some job satisfaction, I could be doing more interesting things with my time.

I think that people who have lots of job satisfaction are the same ones easily amused by shiny objects. It's for that reason that I love to be served by retarded people at fast food restaurants. They love their job, and are proud of it, and actually put in some effort to get your order right. Meanwhile, the teenagers or dirty skins hate you and would love to shit in your food. The point being, in general (there are some exceptions to this rule), you need to be rather simple to be amused by a job (otherwise it wouldn't be a job).

I have long contended that the happiest people in the world are the retards, with the caveat that they fall into the right level of retardedness (functional, but not smart enough to realize how fucked they are).