Managers only understand about resources: time, money and human. And percentages.
Most managers think that 100 plus 10% minus 10% equals 100, so I'm not too sure about those percentages.
Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
31–40 of 47 posts
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#32Depends on who you're selling to. Here are few categories out of top of my head.
- Make website very fancy with videos and do many useless benchmarks showing that it's faster then everything, especially Nodejs
- Create VM language and show that it's just as good as Java but with much more syntactic sugar. Also note that C# runs only on Windows and yours run on everything.
- Do a static compiled-to-bytecode language that will be just as fast as C++. This is very hard so you can forget about this.
- Create another "language" that will compile to Javascript.
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#33Show that it decreases LOC while improving/maintaining readability with performance at par with current ones OR great performance without too much compromise on LOC count and readability.
So in essence, how it makes an average joe like me more productive/powerful.
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#34Implement something useful. Be useful. Better to ask for forgiveness than ask for permission. Only way it works.
> Better to ask for forgiveness than ask for permission.
You can say that again; I forgot this rule, and it cost me quite a good job. It's hard for anyone to argue with a fait accompli.
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#35Earlier quoted context omitted.
This. Node.js and Rails are sexy right? Show your boss how. Do a video screen capture of the time savings you get. Also, execs like what we used to call "The NASCAR Slide™" - which is a presentation slide with all of the logos of companies who use those technologies. The more Fortune 500 companies, "the faster your NASCAR car goes". Pro Tip - Just give them his link http://www.walmartlabs.com/ Note - Be prepared to h…
A screen capture sounds like a very good idea, as a nice way to visualize. People tend to buy based on emotions, and then rationalize with logic. The screen capture sounds like an appeal to emotions, while "the NASCAR slide" would work as justification.
The "NASCAR slide" can also appeal to emotions, as a form of peer pressure. "Oh I wanna be like the big guys, and the big guys use this, I should do what they do".
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#36Stop arguing. I'm a programmer, not a salesperson. $FOO (a new programming language) needs to sell itself.
Cost. What is it going to cost?
Benefit. What are the benefits of using $FOO?
The answer is: it's going to bring in revenue.
$FOO needs to be adopted because it is popular, it is an industry and open standard.
> Do we need to convert everything to $FOO?
The answer is: no.
> Do all of the programmers need to learn $FOO?
The answer is: everyone already knows how to programs in $FOO.
I'd be curious to know what the "entrenched" programming lanaguage is, and what the "new programming language" is.
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#37Implement something useful. Be useful. Better to ask for forgiveness than ask for permission. Only way it works.
That's wishful thinking when it applies to the choice of programming language. If you come to a C shop and implement something in VisualBasic, you will de escorted right out. Do the same but with Java and you will be flying out, through a nearest window :) So - hell, no - it's not how it works at all.
If you come to a C shop and implement something in VisualBasic, you will de escorted right out.
Well, no duh! But I have seen things in unusual languages in large companies become useful then become indispensable. Actually, I worked for a company that couldn't have made $130 million/year if this were not the case.
So - hell, no - it's not how it works at all.
Classic example of someone on the internet mistakenly (and overconfidently) generalizing from their limited experience.
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#38If this isn't obvious to your use case, there is no business reason for trying a new programming language and you are doing the whole business a disservice. I should never have to sell a new language or technology. If it's something the business needs, the uses will be obvious.
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#39One 'argument' that people don't often think of is recruiting and hiring. I recruit for many companies, and the level of applicants I receive for jobs in the more emerging language communities is well above the applicants I usually get for more traditional languages. My evidence is anecdotal, but when I posted Clojure or Scala jobs (and recently Go) I received fewer applicants! but almost all of them were highly qual…
That works, only if that company want to hire the best, instead of cheap.
I have build a career of be the "contrarian" in tech (Use Fox instead of VB, use .NET instead of Java, use Delphi instead of C++, use python instead of PHP, etc), and despite the argument here, is harder to sell. And that include the fact that the managers I have meet truly imagine that I'm the "Best of the best of the best!"
And that mean, no business. ROI be dammed, cheap sell better
Re: Ask HN: How do you sell in a new programming language?
#40Honestly, I think you can rarely make a convincing case based on technical merit or productivity promises alone. There are often good reasons to be conservative about technology choices.
I would try it from a different angle. If the organization wants people who are able to come up with fresh ideas, these will not be the same people who are content with using only very mature technologies. If the organization wants to cultivate an innovation mindset and be attractive for innovative people there needs to be space for experimentation. Who knows what comes of it.
Maybe that's the point where you get fired. If you were hired by an insurance company to maintain their 2002 style J2EE monster that's what's going to happen.