Our customers are banks and law firms. You'd think they would be smart customers but they have not reached the level of enlightenment you just suggested.
Unless you're NASA or a research lab, I'd say pretty much every customer desires speed over everything else. I'm eager to experience the reverse but I'm afraid it's never going to happen.
It means, there are not enough young people paying into social programs to support the older people. It's happening in America. too. Just wait for the baby boomers to wreak havoc on our social programs.
Japan calls it the "greying" of society. They are even encouraging older Japanese to leave the country and go to live in Brazil to relieve society of them as a burden. The Government is also subsidizing births by paying for medical expenses and including a monthly stipend for each child you have.
I lived there for 9 years and returned only 6 years ago. It is a big deal over there.
So, yes, society is in a sense imploding.
Re:Where are the bunkers to protect Citizens ?
on
Back to the Bunker
·
· Score: 1
You make that sound like we had a better choice...
I am no big fan of Bush, never have been. But the alternative was even scarier IMHO. With around 300+10e6 people in this country you'd think we could get some decent candidates.
I remember reading a Larry Niven novel years ago from his "known Space" series. In the asteroid belt, the "Belters" considered anyone who wanted to be in control of the government possessed of a severe character flaw. So, they had intelligence and pyschological profiles done for all their citizens and actually appointed a proper person to act in charge for a limited duration. I know this is unworkable in the real world but I am always deeply suspicious about "anyone" who wants to be president.
Re:Where are the bunkers to protect Citizens ?
on
Back to the Bunker
·
· Score: 1
I tell you...They knew how to engineer a school desk in the 1950's. Today's models could never stand up to a nuclear weapon detonation, nosiree.
If I could go to to work where housing was affordable, I would. The problem is, I live where the cost of living is beyond rediculous because that's where the jobs are. So far, I have heard nothing about a big tech boom looming on the horizon for Montana or freakin Wyoming. These are about the last places in America where I can live for a year for less than what it takes to run the whole Bolivian Government for a month.
I guess I could cut back on calories. My family ought to get by with a combined total of 5000-a-day. And what about those expensive tuition payments my kids will need? I say, don't send them to school; that's just playing into the "Man's" hands. And use public transportation. The 10-mile commute to where I work takes 1.75 hours (No, I am not kidding). The nearly 4 hours sitting on the bus each day might be used to reflect on how fat and wasteful we are in America.
I live in Irvine (Southern California). The absolute bottom of the market here is $600K for a 30-year-old hovel. The only people who are not a mortage payment away from the street are those who bought 10 years ago or have their place paid off. $120K here is the bare minimum and that will just allow you to rent. Forget about getting into a home.
I would have rated your comment "-2 Pious Little Biaatch"
Seriously, what do want for the outrageous cost of health care in America? Results? I'm confident the day will come when we nationalize this service. The costs simply 1) does not get you much in terms of actual care and 2) Is hard for even the middle class to afford.
The first thing we need to do is cancel all those TV shows that try hard to glorify physicians (not doctors, mind you) as if they were actually knowledgable and caring. As a population, we seem to be willing to pay much because we've been trained to believe a physician is the cream of American intellect and a model for the rest of us to emulate; they're somehow worth a fortune to consult. I see them more as another licensed trade with a steep monetary price for admission into the guild.
Those CIS guys cannot program to save their lives. Only CS backgrounds know what they are doing. Every one else should just get out of the business.
I'm sure you instruct your HR people to weed out all those other pesky majors. It's been my experience that it's the CS guys that have the least experience actually coding. However, it's normally those same people who enter the workforce with the mis-guided notion they are going to show the rest of us how it's done.
Where I work, there are two stand-out guys that breathe code while the rest of us try and emulate their every thought pattern. One is a CIS guy, the other a PolySci (yes) graduate. Would they have made it past your initial screening?
Go and see all the false job listings planted by resume-hoarding head hunters. There are some legitimate ones, too. Those that demand experience with every language and methodology spawned in the last 10 years for a mere $30K per year.
IT in America is in decline. If you pursue development, you do it because you love it. Just be warned that you will
1) Never make much money 2) Never have anything resembling job security 3) Always be on the bottom rung of every coporate ladder.
There are exceptions...but they are only exceptions.
No doubt. I do not contest that for a moment. My point was the military was more than eager to take full advantage of the opportunity to get as many people combat experience as possible.
Some of my friends have completed tours in Iraq. Most of them have been divorced by their wives, too. The Marine Corps major commands have an agenda to keep as many Marines on the ground in Iraq as long as possible. Their first priority is to complete the missions as given by our political leadership. The second is to maintain a culture of combat-capable warriors. It is this second point I commented on.
I would be very simplistic indeed for me to assume the US went to war for training purposes.
Having spent 20-years in the Marine Corps, let me be the first to say "You are right on target".
I just left a year and a half ago and saw combat in operation Iraqi Freedom. I can say without hesitation, the leadership has their "dicks in their hands" contemplating having a venue in which to "Train" for real. Will people die? Sure, that's never been a problem for the military. They would gladly exchange a few sons for the realism you just can't get in excercises and simulations. The military NEEDS combat veterans. Period. This is an excellent way to grow a new crop. Why the hell did we do Grenada and Panama? Mostly for the opportunity to shake the cobwebs off our war machine.
It is damned refreshing to know some people can actually see what's going on. This not to say I condone these events. I'm just attempting to validate your point of view.
Most companies want you to get busy cranking out code that they can put into production quickly. That lends itself to "assembly line" thinking, therefore the temptation to use offshore outsourcing is greatly increased.
I swear you must work in the cubicle next to me. You just described my company to a "T".
I do not know why this practice started but I believe the academic degree and the "professional" degree should be kept distinct. Physicians know a lot, sure, but the overwhelming majority never meaningfully extend their body of knowledge the way a normal, academic Doctor is required to do.
Don't even get me started on the whole "Juris Doctor" abomination.
The last two organizations I worked for had publicly stated minority hiring goals and practices. Non-minorities sometimes DO lose out in the coprporate rush to appear enlightened and minority friendly.
When I was in the military, the Government even had to publish racial statistics concerning yearly promotions. Certain percentages of minorities MUST get promoted. The biggest joke was that you were certain to advance if you were a female American-Indian.
When do you suppose we would ever see a 1080p signal from one of these DVD players? There are more and more HD sets out there that support this format. My own TV, sadly, only goes as high as 1080i but I believe the spec for HD calls for resolutions as high as 1080p.
Many jobs on sites like this are nothing more than attempts by headhunters to collect resumes. That is, there was never a job to begin with. This alone makes using job-site stats worthless.
Are IT jobs still in demand? Not where I work. Our development staff has been savaged over the last year. Many of our positions are now based in Bangalore. I see the handwriting on the wall and would like to take proactive steps but the situation is the same where ever I look.
The best tech skill for 2006 is an alternate vocation to fall back on. Say....a Walmart stockboy.
By and Large, that speculation is not far off the mark. China depends pretty much exclusively on technology and ideas developed in the west. Imitation is not innovation, especially when their fabs are built under western supervision.
Even their fledgling spece program borrows heavily from old Soviet technology. I repsect the Chinese and fear them for their hatred of the west. I even admit they are not stupid..not by a long way. They have not, however, wandered far from the cradle yet. And as long as we are willing to give them every idea we have and cut their government in for 50% of the profits automatically, there is not much need for them to grow beyond us for a long time.
Re:The real 90s versus outdated 00s software
on
Java Is So 90s
·
· Score: 2, Interesting
People keep saying this. I suppose that includes most slashdot posters, too.
I do not mean to rock the boat but I have mostly met very good programmers. Those who were less than stellar usually improved markedly after a bit of coaching and review. Why does everyone believe that good programming requires some magic intangible that most of do not have?
I have yet to run across another professional from another discipline who constantly claims all his peers "mostly suck". This is not an attack on you or your post; it is just a fervent wish that we start selling ourselves as the professionals we want to be perceived as being.
I doubt you would get a favorable reference from your former employee if you just failed to show up for work or arrived with box to collect your things.
Slashdot Mirror
Our customers are banks and law firms. You'd think they would be smart customers but they have not reached the level of enlightenment you just suggested.
Unless you're NASA or a research lab, I'd say pretty much every customer desires speed over everything else. I'm eager to experience the reverse but I'm afraid it's never going to happen.
It means, there are not enough young people paying into social programs to support the older people. It's happening in America. too. Just wait for the baby boomers to wreak havoc on our social programs.
Japan calls it the "greying" of society. They are even encouraging older Japanese to leave the country and go to live in Brazil to relieve society of them as a burden. The Government is also subsidizing births by paying for medical expenses and including a monthly stipend for each child you have.
I lived there for 9 years and returned only 6 years ago. It is a big deal over there.
So, yes, society is in a sense imploding.
You make that sound like we had a better choice...
I am no big fan of Bush, never have been. But the alternative was even scarier IMHO. With around 300+10e6 people in this country you'd think we could get some decent candidates.
I remember reading a Larry Niven novel years ago from his "known Space" series. In the asteroid belt, the "Belters" considered anyone who wanted to be in control of the government possessed of a severe character flaw. So, they had intelligence and pyschological profiles done for all their citizens and actually appointed a proper person to act in charge for a limited duration. I know this is unworkable in the real world but I am always deeply suspicious about "anyone" who wants to be president.
I tell you...They knew how to engineer a school desk in the 1950's. Today's models could never stand up to a nuclear weapon detonation, nosiree.
How the hell is this insightful?
If I could go to to work where housing was affordable, I would. The problem is, I live where the cost of living is beyond rediculous because that's where the jobs are. So far, I have heard nothing about a big tech boom looming on the horizon for Montana or freakin Wyoming. These are about the last places in America where I can live for a year for less than what it takes to run the whole Bolivian Government for a month.
I guess I could cut back on calories. My family ought to get by with a combined total of 5000-a-day. And what about those expensive tuition payments my kids will need? I say, don't send them to school; that's just playing into the "Man's" hands. And use public transportation. The 10-mile commute to where I work takes 1.75 hours (No, I am not kidding). The nearly 4 hours sitting on the bus each day might be used to reflect on how fat and wasteful we are in America.
I live in Irvine (Southern California). The absolute bottom of the market here is $600K for a 30-year-old hovel. The only people who are not a mortage payment away from the street are those who bought 10 years ago or have their place paid off. $120K here is the bare minimum and that will just allow you to rent. Forget about getting into a home.
I would have rated your comment "-2 Pious Little Biaatch"
By the way, Did ESR ever make any money from the VA IPO or was all that money essentially gone after 6 months?
I remember reading his message saying he was wealthy and then heard noting else about the matter.
But at least we have better teeth :)
Seriously, what do want for the outrageous cost of health care in America? Results? I'm confident the day will come when we nationalize this service. The costs simply 1) does not get you much in terms of actual care and 2) Is hard for even the middle class to afford.
The first thing we need to do is cancel all those TV shows that try hard to glorify physicians (not doctors, mind you) as if they were actually knowledgable and caring. As a population, we seem to be willing to pay much because we've been trained to believe a physician is the cream of American intellect and a model for the rest of us to emulate; they're somehow worth a fortune to consult. I see them more as another licensed trade with a steep monetary price for admission into the guild.
And Software Engineering is what you default to when you fail your EE courses....
Yeah,
Those CIS guys cannot program to save their lives. Only CS backgrounds know what they are doing. Every one else should just get out of the business.
I'm sure you instruct your HR people to weed out all those other pesky majors. It's been my experience that it's the CS guys that have the least experience actually coding. However, it's normally those same people who enter the workforce with the mis-guided notion they are going to show the rest of us how it's done.
Where I work, there are two stand-out guys that breathe code while the rest of us try and emulate their every thought pattern. One is a CIS guy, the other a PolySci (yes) graduate. Would they have made it past your initial screening?
Most programmers are incompetent. It's across the board.
Most X are incompetent. It's across the board.
Where X = any [person | skill | profession | trade]
Yes,
Go and see all the false job listings planted by resume-hoarding head hunters. There are some legitimate ones, too. Those that demand experience with every language and methodology spawned in the last 10 years for a mere $30K per year.
IT in America is in decline. If you pursue development, you do it because you love it. Just be warned that you will
1) Never make much money
2) Never have anything resembling job security
3) Always be on the bottom rung of every coporate ladder.
There are exceptions...but they are only exceptions.
No doubt. I do not contest that for a moment. My point was the military was more than eager to take full advantage of the opportunity to get as many people combat experience as possible.
Some of my friends have completed tours in Iraq. Most of them have been divorced by their wives, too. The Marine Corps major commands have an agenda to keep as many Marines on the ground in Iraq as long as possible. Their first priority is to complete the missions as given by our political leadership. The second is to maintain a culture of combat-capable warriors. It is this second point I commented on.
I would be very simplistic indeed for me to assume the US went to war for training purposes.
Having spent 20-years in the Marine Corps, let me be the first to say "You are right on target".
I just left a year and a half ago and saw combat in operation Iraqi Freedom. I can say without hesitation, the leadership has their "dicks in their hands" contemplating having a venue in which to "Train" for real. Will people die? Sure, that's never been a problem for the military. They would gladly exchange a few sons for the realism you just can't get in excercises and simulations. The military NEEDS combat veterans. Period. This is an excellent way to grow a new crop. Why the hell did we do Grenada and Panama? Mostly for the opportunity to shake the cobwebs off our war machine.
It is damned refreshing to know some people can actually see what's going on. This not to say I condone these events. I'm just attempting to validate your point of view.
Kudos!
Most companies want you to get busy cranking out code that they can put into production quickly. That lends itself to "assembly line" thinking, therefore the temptation to use offshore outsourcing is greatly increased.
I swear you must work in the cubicle next to me. You just described my company to a "T".
Please, stop calling physicians "Doctor".
I do not know why this practice started but I believe the academic degree and the "professional" degree should be kept distinct. Physicians know a lot, sure, but the overwhelming majority never meaningfully extend their body of knowledge the way a normal, academic Doctor is required to do.
Don't even get me started on the whole "Juris Doctor" abomination.
Uh......you're completely wrong.
The last two organizations I worked for had publicly stated minority hiring goals and practices. Non-minorities sometimes DO lose out in the coprporate rush to appear enlightened and minority friendly.
When I was in the military, the Government even had to publish racial statistics concerning yearly promotions. Certain percentages of minorities MUST get promoted. The biggest joke was that you were certain to advance if you were a female American-Indian.
When do you suppose we would ever see a 1080p signal from one of these DVD players? There are more and more HD sets out there that support this format. My own TV, sadly, only goes as high as 1080i but I believe the spec for HD calls for resolutions as high as 1080p.
This, more than anything, would hasten industy to off-shore every developer position in a big hurry.
Many jobs on sites like this are nothing more than attempts by headhunters to collect resumes. That is, there was never a job to begin with. This alone makes using job-site stats worthless.
Are IT jobs still in demand? Not where I work. Our development staff has been savaged over the last year. Many of our positions are now based in Bangalore. I see the handwriting on the wall and would like to take proactive steps but the situation is the same where ever I look.
The best tech skill for 2006 is an alternate vocation to fall back on. Say....a Walmart stockboy.
I suppose you do not read many UNIX programming texts, do you?
By and Large, that speculation is not far off the mark. China depends pretty much exclusively on technology and ideas developed in the west. Imitation is not innovation, especially when their fabs are built under western supervision.
:)
Even their fledgling spece program borrows heavily from old Soviet technology. I repsect the Chinese and fear them for their hatred of the west. I even admit they are not stupid..not by a long way. They have not, however, wandered far from the cradle yet. And as long as we are willing to give them every idea we have and cut their government in for 50% of the profits automatically, there is not much need for them to grow beyond us for a long time.
My opinion...thanks for indulging me
True dat...mos def..
People keep saying this. I suppose that includes most slashdot posters, too.
I do not mean to rock the boat but I have mostly met very good programmers. Those who were less than stellar usually improved markedly after a bit of coaching and review. Why does everyone believe that good programming requires some magic intangible that most of do not have?
I have yet to run across another professional from another discipline who constantly claims all his peers "mostly suck". This is not an attack on you or your post; it is just a fervent wish that we start selling ourselves as the professionals we want to be perceived as being.
Now QA? They suck....:)
Interesting. However this is based on Java, which is a definite no-no where I work.
I doubt you would get a favorable reference from your former employee if you just failed to show up for work or arrived with box to collect your things.
I would always give the courtesy of ample notice.