Then I realized I wasn't and became much more humble. In fact, I would have said that I was the most humble person on Earth.
But that wasn't very humble of me so I became a bit less humble. I adjusted my humility to just the right amount that makes me better than everyone else without actually losing the humility that makes me so special.
Because for me, work is more than just collecting a paycheck. It is an opportunity to create value for others and receive a reward for creating that value.
So don't apply to any startups - problem solved.
Isn't that advice sort of like telling an business guy who has trouble recognizing good programmers to not start a software company? Okay, so maybe that is good advice, but it doesn't exactly help one grow -- you know?
Many people in the business world are annoyed with programmers because of the arrogance and ignorance you display above.
Many people in the technical world are annoyed by arrogrance and ignorance too. Honestly, I'm a bit igornant about how I was arrogant in the grandfather post. Perhaps you are confusing it with healthy skepicism. You got me on the ignorance part. Libraries of books have been written on the things I don't know. But don't worry, I am always learning -- although I tend to focus on things that are useful to be first.
The article in question is slashdotted, but from the responses it sounds like yet another programmers wet dream [...]
No. The article was mostly useless. "Hire people who programmed as a kid." "Hire people who talk forever about technical stuff that most people find boring." "Most startups fail because business people don't hire good programmers." Blah blah blah.
As someone who has experience writing software (and not engineering software -- anyone who thinks software is engineered today does not really understand the meaning of the word -- that right there is lowering your credibility), would you be comfortable hiring a new CS graduate to be in charge of software development for your hypothetical startup? I'm going to guess not. Why would I be any more comfortable 'hiring' a new MBA graduate to be my boss at a hypothetical startup? Who cares if you have a software development background? That would almost be worse. In my experience, the bosses value employee skills that the boss does not himself have.
Get some experience running a profitable business and then we can talk. Until then, the risk of spending my life working towards a dead-end is just too high (especially since there is another programmer out there with worse negotiation skills who will take that increased risk for less reward thus limited the reward you would be willing to offer me).
I would be much more interested in an article that tells programmers how to recognize good business people. I don't want to waste five years of my life implementing some POS idea by Joe Random MBA that is never going to make a dime. I am extremely hesitant to go work for any startup unless I personally know the people starting it and know that they have a track record of making good business decisions. From my experience, many business people feel the same way about technical people.
And what is this about startups failing because the business people hire crappy programmers. Has anyone considered that maybe selling pet food over the internet is simply less efficient that the distribution system build by companies like Wal-Mart?
Yeah, I think the Friends writers made two-layer jokes like that a lot. For instance, Chandler's love song for both Monica and Janice was "My Funny Valentine". Go look up the lyrics for that song. It's a gag love song. No one would want that sung about them.
Orson Scott Card wrote a book adaptation of the movie The Abyss. He created motivating backgrounds for many of the characters. I read the book first and was disappointed by the movie which had very little of the character development. It was one of the rare times when a book based on a movie was really good.
I was taught assembler in my second year of school. It's kinda like construction work -- with a toothpick for a tool. So when I made my senior year, I threw my code away, And learned the way to program that I still prefer today.
Now, some folks on the Internet put their faith in C++. They swear that it's so powerful, it's what God used for us. And maybe it lets mortals dredge their objects from the C. But I think that explains why only God can make a tree.
For God wrote in Lisp code When he filled the leaves with green. The fractal flowers and recursive roots: The most lovely hack I've seen. And when I ponder snowflakes, never finding two the same, I know God likes a language with its own four-letter name.
Now, I've used a SUN under Unix, so I've seen what C can hold. I've surfed for Perls, found what Fortran's for, Got that Java stuff down cold. Though the chance that I'd write COBOL code is a SNOBOL's chance in Hell. And I basically hate hieroglyphs, so I won't use APL.
Now, God must know all these languages, and a few I haven't named. But the Lord made sure, when each sparrow falls, that its flesh will be reclaimed. And the Lord could not count grains of sand with a 32-bit word. Who knows where we would go to if Lisp weren't what he preferred?
And God wrote in Lisp code Every creature great and small. Don't search the disk drive for man.c, When the listing's on the wall. And when I watch the lightning burn Unbelievers to a crisp, I know God had six days to work, So he wrote it all in Lisp.
Yes, God had a deadline. So he wrote it all in Lisp.
I don't know shit about shit either. I have this science-fictiony theory about quantum effects and alternate realities. Some quantum theories predict that alternate realities are continuously splitting off of our own. I think they are also combining. Two spaces that are similar will remerge into a single quantum state. This can happen locally. The entire universe is made of overlapping quantum bubbles of alternate realities. Observations and memory across bubbles link them together. It forces them to merge together (or rather prevents one from merging without the other).
A rock observing a supernova is warmed slighly in the same way that a rock is warmed slightly because a cloud moves out of the way. The heat does not preserve information and so those two realities can merge together (and the first rock becomes unentangled with the supernova). Our sensors do make the distinction between those two events. Because we record and preserve that information, we remain entangled with the supernova and cannot merge back into a reality that did not have the supernova -- at least until we forget the information.
I don't know how this shortens the life of the universe quite yet.
Maybe it is the memory of observing the radiation. Keeping a record maintains links with a specific past. Had the photons fallen on dumb forgetful matter then there would be no way to distinguish today's reality from a reality where those photons had never existed.
I think I might have met the guy who did this in Las Vegas. I went to the Star Trek Experience and started talking to a guy in uniform who I thought was an employee. It turns out he is just a fan who likes to wear the uniform. He lives in Florida and said that he flew out just to eat dinner at Quark's. He also said that his parents let him turn his 2nd bedroom into a replica of the Enterprise bridge. I suppose he could have been lying, but the fact that he was just hanging out in a Starfleet uniform adds a little credibility to his fanaticism.
We ended up talking about Star Trek for about an hour. I don't think I've ever met someone so enthusiasic who wasn't also terribly annoying.
But Nintendo makes money on each Wii console sold. Even if they don't sell more games, they still got their cash. If each buyer of the 360/PS3 purchased no more games after the console then MS/Sony would be in trouble.
Slashdot Mirror
Really? Subscription based web service failed? Who could have predicted that?
They, as a class, seem to insist they know everything better than anyone.
I'll agree with that. I see it more among younger techies. I've even been guilty of it.
The part that is aimed at you adresses your implication that a 'good businessman' will guarantee success
Having good leaders with good plans greatly increases the chance of success over bad leaders with bad plans.
But, hey, this is slashdot! Read whatever you want into anything.
Once I thought I was better than everyone else.
Then I realized I wasn't and became much more humble. In fact, I would have said that I was the most humble person on Earth.
But that wasn't very humble of me so I became a bit less humble. I adjusted my humility to just the right amount that makes me better than everyone else without actually losing the humility that makes me so special.
See, that is actually good advice. Someone write a slashdot article linking to that post.
I think that DerekLyons could learn a thing or two from you.
If you get a paycheck, what does it matter?
Because for me, work is more than just collecting a paycheck. It is an opportunity to create value for others and receive a reward for creating that value.
So don't apply to any startups - problem solved.
Isn't that advice sort of like telling an business guy who has trouble recognizing good programmers to not start a software company? Okay, so maybe that is good advice, but it doesn't exactly help one grow -- you know?
Many people in the business world are annoyed with programmers because of the arrogance and ignorance you display above.
Many people in the technical world are annoyed by arrogrance and ignorance too. Honestly, I'm a bit igornant about how I was arrogant in the grandfather post. Perhaps you are confusing it with healthy skepicism. You got me on the ignorance part. Libraries of books have been written on the things I don't know. But don't worry, I am always learning -- although I tend to focus on things that are useful to be first.
The article in question is slashdotted, but from the responses it sounds like yet another programmers wet dream [...]
No. The article was mostly useless. "Hire people who programmed as a kid." "Hire people who talk forever about technical stuff that most people find boring." "Most startups fail because business people don't hire good programmers." Blah blah blah.
As someone who has experience writing software (and not engineering software -- anyone who thinks software is engineered today does not really understand the meaning of the word -- that right there is lowering your credibility), would you be comfortable hiring a new CS graduate to be in charge of software development for your hypothetical startup? I'm going to guess not. Why would I be any more comfortable 'hiring' a new MBA graduate to be my boss at a hypothetical startup? Who cares if you have a software development background? That would almost be worse. In my experience, the bosses value employee skills that the boss does not himself have.
Get some experience running a profitable business and then we can talk. Until then, the risk of spending my life working towards a dead-end is just too high (especially since there is another programmer out there with worse negotiation skills who will take that increased risk for less reward thus limited the reward you would be willing to offer me).
It is an abbreviation for "resume" in Latin.
I would be much more interested in an article that tells programmers how to recognize good business people. I don't want to waste five years of my life implementing some POS idea by Joe Random MBA that is never going to make a dime. I am extremely hesitant to go work for any startup unless I personally know the people starting it and know that they have a track record of making good business decisions. From my experience, many business people feel the same way about technical people.
And what is this about startups failing because the business people hire crappy programmers. Has anyone considered that maybe selling pet food over the internet is simply less efficient that the distribution system build by companies like Wal-Mart?
Steve Ballmer is a pretty big guy. Had he hit Mr. Leblanc with a chair then Mr. Leblanc would be dead and not in a hospital with "injuries".
Don't forget about Blue Dragon.
What an unfortunate signature to have. I highly recommend staying away from vi. Perhaps MS Word would suit you well.
You might be able to hack your way outside of the box.
Dude, you need a new girlfriend. Life is too short to spend it in petty arguments. And whatever you do, do no marry her.
Yeah, I think the Friends writers made two-layer jokes like that a lot. For instance, Chandler's love song for both Monica and Janice was "My Funny Valentine". Go look up the lyrics for that song. It's a gag love song. No one would want that sung about them.
Orson Scott Card wrote a book adaptation of the movie The Abyss. He created motivating backgrounds for many of the characters. I read the book first and was disappointed by the movie which had very little of the character development. It was one of the rare times when a book based on a movie was really good.
Less of a superheroish Batcave and more of a plain old bat cave.
http://www.gnu.org/fun/jokes/eternal-flame.html
I was taught assembler
in my second year of school.
It's kinda like construction work --
with a toothpick for a tool.
So when I made my senior year,
I threw my code away,
And learned the way to program
that I still prefer today.
Now, some folks on the Internet
put their faith in C++.
They swear that it's so powerful,
it's what God used for us.
And maybe it lets mortals dredge
their objects from the C.
But I think that explains
why only God can make a tree.
For God wrote in Lisp code
When he filled the leaves with green.
The fractal flowers and recursive roots:
The most lovely hack I've seen.
And when I ponder snowflakes,
never finding two the same,
I know God likes a language
with its own four-letter name.
Now, I've used a SUN under Unix,
so I've seen what C can hold.
I've surfed for Perls, found what Fortran's for,
Got that Java stuff down cold.
Though the chance that I'd write COBOL code
is a SNOBOL's chance in Hell.
And I basically hate hieroglyphs,
so I won't use APL.
Now, God must know all these languages,
and a few I haven't named.
But the Lord made sure, when each sparrow falls,
that its flesh will be reclaimed.
And the Lord could not count grains of sand
with a 32-bit word.
Who knows where we would go to
if Lisp weren't what he preferred?
And God wrote in Lisp code
Every creature great and small.
Don't search the disk drive for man.c,
When the listing's on the wall.
And when I watch the lightning burn
Unbelievers to a crisp,
I know God had six days to work,
So he wrote it all in Lisp.
Yes, God had a deadline.
So he wrote it all in Lisp.
I don't know shit about shit either. I have this science-fictiony theory about quantum effects and alternate realities. Some quantum theories predict that alternate realities are continuously splitting off of our own. I think they are also combining. Two spaces that are similar will remerge into a single quantum state. This can happen locally. The entire universe is made of overlapping quantum bubbles of alternate realities. Observations and memory across bubbles link them together. It forces them to merge together (or rather prevents one from merging without the other).
A rock observing a supernova is warmed slighly in the same way that a rock is warmed slightly because a cloud moves out of the way. The heat does not preserve information and so those two realities can merge together (and the first rock becomes unentangled with the supernova). Our sensors do make the distinction between those two events. Because we record and preserve that information, we remain entangled with the supernova and cannot merge back into a reality that did not have the supernova -- at least until we forget the information.
I don't know how this shortens the life of the universe quite yet.
Maybe it is the memory of observing the radiation. Keeping a record maintains links with a specific past. Had the photons fallen on dumb forgetful matter then there would be no way to distinguish today's reality from a reality where those photons had never existed.
I think I might have met the guy who did this in Las Vegas. I went to the Star Trek Experience and started talking to a guy in uniform who I thought was an employee. It turns out he is just a fan who likes to wear the uniform. He lives in Florida and said that he flew out just to eat dinner at Quark's. He also said that his parents let him turn his 2nd bedroom into a replica of the Enterprise bridge. I suppose he could have been lying, but the fact that he was just hanging out in a Starfleet uniform adds a little credibility to his fanaticism.
We ended up talking about Star Trek for about an hour. I don't think I've ever met someone so enthusiasic who wasn't also terribly annoying.
But Nintendo makes money on each Wii console sold. Even if they don't sell more games, they still got their cash. If each buyer of the 360/PS3 purchased no more games after the console then MS/Sony would be in trouble.
Hi. I'm Casey Kasem and I'll be your waiter tonight.
Hey, W3C, how about adding the caseykasem tag to the spec?
No really, do it.
No, no, no, no, no. Do it.
Do it, come on.
Do it.
Because if some piece of technology does not work optimally, no one should ever try to create a better solution?
All of those arguments against browsers in phones sound a lot like opportunities to me.
How does this service change when the cars become completely autonomous? Would there even be a need to park them?
There is an effective argument. Much better than the original author's argument. It also fits well with my argument.