For all the people whose blood boils at the mere mention of Microsoft's name: give this man some credit for leaving the company. And, as others here have pointed out, what better laboratory for the study of cyber warfare than MS? Could YOU have handled that heat as long as he did?
I've worked for a female MIS who would take credit for engineers' work and have emotional fits when she was corrected by technically proficient people. Your comments reminded me instantly of that experience. The person in question was once quoted in a management-oriented tech journal as saying that our organization had moved to thin-client technology. The fact was that she thought our IBM NetVista all-in-ones were "thin clients" because they had LCD screens and a small footprint. When it was pointed out later that PCs with a full operating system, a 10-gig disk full of software, and 256mb RAM were not exactly what was meant by "thin," she claimed she was misquoted by the tech journal.She was a tough person to work for at times, but she did bring lots of money into the department by virtue of her golden tongue at executive meetings.
All this is to say that it is not desirable to have a non-technical person directly in charge of engineering/developer types. But the ability to communicate well can get you far, even if you lack hard technical background.
It is BECAUSE women tend to excel in the liberal arts that they will appear in greater numbers at the top of the IT/IS ladder. They will do this without having advanced science degrees. I see this happening already.
What so many male geeks lack, having attained great proficiency in math and logic, are these skills:
1) Ability to speak clearly and intelligibly; 2) Ability to listen carefully to what others say, and understand what they want; 3) Ability to express their understanding of the executive wing's goals using the written word. Properly.
In many small to medium sized companies, where job security is better than it is in the Unfortunate 500, it's not all about the precision of your code; it's also about being able to communicate with non-technical people who know what they want and rely on you to get them there.
Arrrgggghhhh.
I sympathize - - but, for heaven's sake, why join the ranks of the truly worthless? Hasn't anyone seen what happens to these wonks at places like WorldCom and Enron? Talk about expendable!! The lessons to be learned, among others, are that business runs in cycles and big companies treat professional people like commodities. Find yourself a small- to medium-sized place of employment, get friendly with the execs, and settle into an above-average salary at a place where people are allowed to have a personal life. Employment at Fortune 500 companies has been overrated for years. They are mills, and people are their grist.
Times have been tough for owners of data networks - - not enough people have been using all that cable which cost so much to lay into the ground.
So let market forces do what they always have done: weed out the greedy folks. If some people choose to threaten their subscribers for using P2P services, some other company will see the situation and say, "Hey - - let's charge an extra $5 a month to let people upload whatever they like, within reasonable parameters, and we'll see how many new customers we get." I think that's what needs to happen in this case - - these turkeys need some competition.
Remember, this is the US saying it's going to monitor the entire Internet. So, how would it REALLY be done, and what would be the results? I foresee the following:
1) Engage in lengthy debate in Congress. Have several failed bills. When the final bill emerges, it addresses not only Internet security, but also the planting of genetically altered grapefruits in economically depressed regions with a high percentage of illegal immigrant migrant workers.
2) Create an oversight board to monitor the activity of the department created by the President's Bipartisan Commission on Genetically Altered Citrus Crops and Suspicious Internet Activity (PBCGACCSIA).
3) Staff oversight board and department with board members from failed megacorporations whose CEO's have already burned through their golden parachute funds.
4) Employ technical people who are capable of formulating, within 12 months, a 14,521 page document outlining methods of collecting and analyzing data from Internet activity of migrant workers picking brocolli in North Dakota.
5) Declare genetically altered fruit "illegal combatants" and issue sanctions against imported Kiwi fruit.
Forgive me - - every dog has his day. But I work in the banking industry, and these have been very good times for banks. You know the drill: people get scared of the markets and other risky investments, so they put their savings into cash accounts.
As for me, I was part of a team of four people who saved the company a recurring $350,000/yr. expense by bringing our home banking services in-house (it previously had been with an ASP). We did it for under 50 grand. My part, as the engineer, was setting up firewall and Internet service failover (thanks,RadWare) and putting a couple of relatively secure servers on a DMZ. I had the easy part. Sadly, the platform was Windows/IIS. A shame, yes, but I'm the only guy with interest in Unix in our shop. Oh well. As for the execs, I guess they felt pretty grateful. No complaints from me - - I went out and traded my car for a 2003 model.
Merry Christmas to all,
Laz.
How much does it cost to get a life?
on
Hardware Bits
·
· Score: 4, Insightful
"The Xoxide PC Tachometer Kit is a neat and unique product that will definitely stand out at a LAN party."
A person with better things to do than hook up an automotive tachometer to a CPU would stand out even more.
Look, you worked hard to acquire the knowledge you have. Your former manager, of all people, should know what you're worth. Uptime to her means keeping her job and, perhaps, getting a bonus. If it made you feel good to help her in that way, great. My former boss worked hard to get my salary up where it should be, so I would - - and have - - sent business her way since she left to become a consultant. Help those who help you. Charge those who profit from your labor.
Mostly, I just don't get the "slowness" thing. I run stock PC hardware and my KDE desktop seems to have as much snap as any GUI. I dunno, maybe my Voodoo 3 is particulary good under XF86 . . . .
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For all the people whose blood boils at the mere mention of Microsoft's name: give this man some credit for leaving the company. And, as others here have pointed out, what better laboratory for the study of cyber warfare than MS? Could YOU have handled that heat as long as he did?
What a load.
What is the cost to the environment of making a foot-long hotdog, all the way, WITH slaw - - including the flatulence one hour later?
If the Iraqis think Rumsfeld is scary . . . .
I've worked for a female MIS who would take credit for engineers' work and have emotional fits when she was corrected by technically proficient people. Your comments reminded me instantly of that experience. The person in question was once quoted in a management-oriented tech journal as saying that our organization had moved to thin-client technology. The fact was that she thought our IBM NetVista all-in-ones were "thin clients" because they had LCD screens and a small footprint. When it was pointed out later that PCs with a full operating system, a 10-gig disk full of software, and 256mb RAM were not exactly what was meant by "thin," she claimed she was misquoted by the tech journal.She was a tough person to work for at times, but she did bring lots of money into the department by virtue of her golden tongue at executive meetings.
All this is to say that it is not desirable to have a non-technical person directly in charge of engineering/developer types. But the ability to communicate well can get you far, even if you lack hard technical background.
It is BECAUSE women tend to excel in the liberal arts that they will appear in greater numbers at the top of the IT/IS ladder. They will do this without having advanced science degrees. I see this happening already.
What so many male geeks lack, having attained great proficiency in math and logic, are these skills:
1) Ability to speak clearly and intelligibly;
2) Ability to listen carefully to what others say, and understand what they want;
3) Ability to express their understanding of the executive wing's goals using the written word. Properly. In many small to medium sized companies, where job security is better than it is in the Unfortunate 500, it's not all about the precision of your code; it's also about being able to communicate with non-technical people who know what they want and rely on you to get them there.
Arrrgggghhhh. I sympathize - - but, for heaven's sake, why join the ranks of the truly worthless? Hasn't anyone seen what happens to these wonks at places like WorldCom and Enron? Talk about expendable!! The lessons to be learned, among others, are that business runs in cycles and big companies treat professional people like commodities. Find yourself a small- to medium-sized place of employment, get friendly with the execs, and settle into an above-average salary at a place where people are allowed to have a personal life. Employment at Fortune 500 companies has been overrated for years. They are mills, and people are their grist.
Times have been tough for owners of data networks - - not enough people have been using all that cable which cost so much to lay into the ground.
So let market forces do what they always have done: weed out the greedy folks. If some people choose to threaten their subscribers for using P2P services, some other company will see the situation and say, "Hey - - let's charge an extra $5 a month to let people upload whatever they like, within reasonable parameters, and we'll see how many new customers we get." I think that's what needs to happen in this case - - these turkeys need some competition.
Remember, this is the US saying it's going to monitor the entire Internet. So, how would it REALLY be done, and what would be the results? I foresee the following: 1) Engage in lengthy debate in Congress. Have several failed bills. When the final bill emerges, it addresses not only Internet security, but also the planting of genetically altered grapefruits in economically depressed regions with a high percentage of illegal immigrant migrant workers. 2) Create an oversight board to monitor the activity of the department created by the President's Bipartisan Commission on Genetically Altered Citrus Crops and Suspicious Internet Activity (PBCGACCSIA). 3) Staff oversight board and department with board members from failed megacorporations whose CEO's have already burned through their golden parachute funds. 4) Employ technical people who are capable of formulating, within 12 months, a 14,521 page document outlining methods of collecting and analyzing data from Internet activity of migrant workers picking brocolli in North Dakota. 5) Declare genetically altered fruit "illegal combatants" and issue sanctions against imported Kiwi fruit.
It started off slowly and then just fizzled out altogether.
Forgive me - - every dog has his day. But I work in the banking industry, and these have been very good times for banks. You know the drill: people get scared of the markets and other risky investments, so they put their savings into cash accounts.
As for me, I was part of a team of four people who saved the company a recurring $350,000/yr. expense by bringing our home banking services in-house (it previously had been with an ASP). We did it for under 50 grand. My part, as the engineer, was setting up firewall and Internet service failover (thanks,RadWare) and putting a couple of relatively secure servers on a DMZ. I had the easy part. Sadly, the platform was Windows/IIS. A shame, yes, but I'm the only guy with interest in Unix in our shop. Oh well. As for the execs, I guess they felt pretty grateful. No complaints from me - - I went out and traded my car for a 2003 model.
Merry Christmas to all,
Laz.
"The Xoxide PC Tachometer Kit is a neat and unique product that will definitely stand out at a LAN party." A person with better things to do than hook up an automotive tachometer to a CPU would stand out even more.
Look, you worked hard to acquire the knowledge you have. Your former manager, of all people, should know what you're worth. Uptime to her means keeping her job and, perhaps, getting a bonus. If it made you feel good to help her in that way, great. My former boss worked hard to get my salary up where it should be, so I would - - and have - - sent business her way since she left to become a consultant. Help those who help you. Charge those who profit from your labor.
Mostly, I just don't get the "slowness" thing. I run stock PC hardware and my KDE desktop seems to have as much snap as any GUI. I dunno, maybe my Voodoo 3 is particulary good under XF86 . . . .
I know it's been pointed out before, but Agent works very well from Wine.