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What Jonathan Coulton Learned From The Technology Industry (geekwire.com)
In a new article on GeekWire, Jonathan Coulton explains why he left a comfortable software development job in 2005 to launch a career as an online singer-songwriter. But he also describes the things he learned from the tech industry.
"These guys were doing this thing they wanted to do, this thing they felt competent doing. They didn't chase after things, and they worked hard, but it was a business they created because they enjoyed it. They tried to minimize the things they didn't want to do. It wasn't about getting rich; it was about getting satisfied...
"I wanted to a set a good example to my children. I wanted to be the person I wanted to be, someone willing to take chances -- a person who didn't live with enormous regrets..." Within the first year, he had not replaced his software salary, but had enough success to cover his babysitter and to keep food on the table.
When he was younger -- in the pre-internet days -- "It was very unclear how to become a musician," Coulton explains. But somehow rolling his own career path eventually led to a life which includes everything from guest appearances on radio shows to an annual cruise with his fans (this year featuring Aimee Mann, Wil Wheaton, and Redshirts author John Scalzi).
"I wanted to a set a good example to my children. I wanted to be the person I wanted to be, someone willing to take chances -- a person who didn't live with enormous regrets..." Within the first year, he had not replaced his software salary, but had enough success to cover his babysitter and to keep food on the table.
When he was younger -- in the pre-internet days -- "It was very unclear how to become a musician," Coulton explains. But somehow rolling his own career path eventually led to a life which includes everything from guest appearances on radio shows to an annual cruise with his fans (this year featuring Aimee Mann, Wil Wheaton, and Redshirts author John Scalzi).
The songs he wrote and performed for Portal 1 and 2 were excellent. I know you are aiming for humor, but he's a genuinely talented musician and songwriter.
In case you are serious:
Look up the following coulton songs on youtube/spotify/whatever
re: your brain
code monkey
skullcrusher mountain
Still alive
(And for something sweet and cute: drinking with you, his most underrated song ever).
The credits are one of the best highlights of the games (well, Portal 1 specifically).
Shit the credit sequence in Portal 1 is pretty damn famous, famous enough to have several YouTube recordings of it. How you missed this I don't understand. I suspect you just don't care enough about the games you play. Treat them as disposable, not the art they often are, eh? Fuckwit.