What being a programmer is like

[GSH]

Sad, but true: Programming Isn't Manual Labor, But It Still Sucks. (Article spotted by a coworker, and running around office emails)

-- GSH

[Red Spot]

I've done physical labour and 'office jockey' jobs and I'll take physical labour over an office job every time .... if it wasnt for the difference in pay.

I still think fondly of the time I worked at the specialist department at Daf Trucks (everything steel that is not mainstream production). I may think fondly of what I have learned at the offices I worked at, but I dont think back fondly of the work itself, nor the co-operation there (or general lack of).

[Nielk1]

The biggest issue with being a programmer is the lack of understanding of those who demand things of you. Some of this stuff is complex enough to write a paper on once you pull it off, but you don't have the time and your place of work certainly won't offer the free moment.

[Red Spot]

The biggest issue with being a programmer is the lack of understanding of those who demand things of you. Some of this stuff is complex enough to write a paper on once you pull it off, but you don't have the time and your place of work certainly won't offer the free moment.

I do like to add to that that it works both ways. Most, if not all, the programmers I've encountered in production environments seem to pull up a wall and not seem to understand that if they do not work in the open and inform people, people are going to ask questions or even make demands.

[Nielk1]

The biggest issue with being a programmer is the lack of understanding of those who demand things of you. Some of this stuff is complex enough to write a paper on once you pull it off, but you don't have the time and your place of work certainly won't offer the free moment.

I do like to add to that that it works both ways. Most, if not all, the programmers I've encountered in production environments seem to pull up a wall and not seem to understand that if they do not work in the open and inform people, people are going to ask questions or even make demands.

I think you underestimate the barrier. They've probably just come to the understanding that it's better to just have ppl think it's magic than think they understand it.

The worst thing I've ever experienced are people who think they know how things work. The questions I get asked are often entirely unanswerable. It would be like being asked "what banana is the sky?".

[MrTwosheds]

The "barrier" is an essential protection against "political" attack from other parts of an organization, it's just too easy for other departments to throw a software development projects bugs at it's programmers, it is normal for software testers to be sworn to secrecy, not from the competition but from your own people and their petty interdepartmental power games.

[Nielk1]

The "barrier" is an essential protection against "political" attack from other parts of an organization, it's just too easy for other departments to throw a software development projects bugs at it's programmers, it is normal for software testers to be sworn to secrecy, not from the competition but from your own people and their petty interdepartmental power games.

Even where I work is not that dysfunctional. If you had work experience like that, it's not the standard. Most inter-departmental restrictions, when they exist, are either A: to keep things flowing smoothly and B: to prevent the programmers from offing themselves.

[MrTwosheds]

Where I once worked was so dysfunctional you simply would not believe it. There is nothing standard about them, they get their money for nothing and their politicians for free...The Defoliatti are real!
I expect it mostly depends on what you are developing, pc type software is probably more straight forward. Dedicated software for large systems, where hardware is developed at the same time as the software tends to produce a highly charged interdepartmental environment, the hardware systems guys really really don't want it to be their fault after production has started, software can only fix so much and neither of them can fix the Japanese just being much better at it...That takes the finance guys to buy them out and sell all its own people down the river in the name of shareholder profit...
Their so lucky having a tame superpower government to do their bidding, buying and cover up their little accidents for them.

[GSH]

It's not a hack if it works: http://www.geek.com/games/a-train-you-r ... t-1628532/

-- GSH

[Nielk1]

It's not a hack if it works: http://www.geek.com/games/a-train-you-r ... t-1628532/

-- GSH

True elegance

[MrTwosheds]

Yes , more Hat Orientated Programming please.

[TheJamsh]

This is so accurate it hurts...

[GSH]

And what crunch time feels like - youtube link.

"Everything's on fire!"
"Where are the chips?"
"We had chips, they're burned."

(Also from work emails)

-- GSH

[jack775544]

That video is scarily accurate.

[Ded10c]

Not really specific to programming, but an interesting explanation of the dreaded "certification". Amongst other things it explains how certification can give rise to the "Day One" patches and DLC.
http://ramiismail.com/2016/08/patch-the-process/