Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me • Hacker News Board

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#71

Post by Apocryphon » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:08 AM UTC

FreedomToCreate wrote: post #36

Wonder what this guy would say to the countless millions who toil away in factories, big box retail, and accounting offices. None of these people do this for the love of the job. They do it because it needs to be done and they get paid for it. I wouldn't be so critical of your feelings but you whine about how society didn't let you do what you want to do on your terms. Change your circumstances. No one is just given…

But that's the thing, though- the hypesters promises one thing, and the industry delivers another. "Everyone should code." "Software is eating the world." All of this is true, but despite the magic of engineering, which gives you the biggest lever in the world to move the most weight, actual coding jobs are swamped in mundanity. If people going in knew that it was more Office Space than The Social Network, it'd be less of a disillusionment.

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#72

Post by Apocryphon » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:09 AM UTC

staunch wrote: post #38

If programmers made twice as much money, it would be such a great job. And yet salaries have been relatively flat for over a decade (adjusted for inflation). Something is wrong that salaries never seem to rise with demand in Silicon Valley. We know there was a secret deal to help suppress wages at one point, but it's not obvious why it's been so successful. Is it new graduates, immigration abuse, internationalization…

Silicon Valley presumes to disrupt everything, why not labor laws? And by disrupt, I mean in favor of the worker, and not management.

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#73

Post by derekp7 » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:09 AM UTC

My biggest problem with coding for an employer, is that they then own exclusive rights to the code. Essentially, you are solving a problem. If that problem is unique to the employer, then that is fine for them to own the code. But if the project involves writing a bunch of potentially reusable routines, such as what you might find in a third party library, it just seems awful that you can never solve those same problems again in the future (as more likely than not, you will end up typing in about the same code).

So it really seems like you are giving up a piece of your mind whenever you program for someone else. For an example of what I'm talking about, see XKCD 664.

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#74

Post by Apocryphon » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:09 AM UTC

jkereako wrote: post #49

tomreece wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Indeed it is. Haven't I accrued debt, worked hard, and earned the right to be in a job I should be happy at? I deserve that. So do you and so does every body else.

Happiness is not a right. This kind of thinking will perpetuate your misery.

It's enshrined in the American Constitution.

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#75

Post by Apocryphon » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:10 AM UTC

solipsism wrote: post #35

moron4hire wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everyone deserves everything. We live in a society that is capable of creating a post-scarcity economy (and in many cases, such as media and software, has) yet is putting itself through ever more convoluted contortions to make sure poor people don't get to have anything. Eff. That. Noise. Work is not a moral imperative.

If one of our descendants happens to be born into a society that grants him/her the _entitlement_ to happiness, that person will be very lucky indeed. We haven't been born into such a society, however.

We're on the threshold of one. We should start living and working that way.

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#76

Post by Apocryphon » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:11 AM UTC

jmspring wrote: post #40

NhanH wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are not giving the writer enough charity with your interpretation. Almost every single programmers I personally know around his age shares the sentiment. Ranging from SV startup jobs to the FB/Google/Microsoft/AMZN, even some doing programming in countries half way across the world.

So, a generation of entitled? Me - I stay with a job (or side project or consulting) if it is fun and I am learning something. Pick and choose accordingly. From the article -- "I write test automation to test the front-end" -- there were potentially interesting things here maybe some years ago, but he put himself into a position that frequently gets off shored and doesn't have a lot of room for growth/creativity. Rea…

We live in a time of unprecedented prosperity and productivity. Why shouldn't we be entitled?

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#77

Post by krapp » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:30 AM UTC

Apocryphon wrote: post #74

jkereako wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Happiness is not a right. This kind of thinking will perpetuate your misery.

It's enshrined in the American Constitution.

The Declaration of Independence declares a natural right to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness[0]." Happiness itself is not enshrined as a right, certainly not by the Constitution[1].

[0] http://www.founding.com/the_declaration_of_i/pageID.2423/def...

[1] https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CDOC-110hdoc50/pdf/CDOC-110hdo...

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#78

Post by leshow » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:36 AM UTC

Apocryphon wrote: post #75

solipsism wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If one of our descendants happens to be born into a society that grants him/her the _entitlement_ to happiness, that person will be very lucky indeed. We haven't been born into such a society, however.

We're on the threshold of one. We should start living and working that way.

no we aren't, happiness is to nebulous to just be 'solved'

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#79

Post by leshow » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:37 AM UTC

Apocryphon wrote: post #74

jkereako wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Happiness is not a right. This kind of thinking will perpetuate your misery.

It's enshrined in the American Constitution.

PURSUIT of happiness.

try going to the police and saying your right to happiness has been thwarted by the company paying your salary... see how far that gets you

Re: Coding as a Career Isn't Right for Me

#80

Post by ap22213 » Sat, Jan 30, 2016, 2:45 AM UTC

staunch wrote: post #38

If programmers made twice as much money, it would be such a great job. And yet salaries have been relatively flat for over a decade (adjusted for inflation). Something is wrong that salaries never seem to rise with demand in Silicon Valley. We know there was a secret deal to help suppress wages at one point, but it's not obvious why it's been so successful. Is it new graduates, immigration abuse, internationalization…

It would be nice if wages were based on supply and demand. But, it's more like wages are equilibrium points in a dynamic system.

For example, if cool software engineer goes from $100k to $200k, then his boss, Mgr #1, is going to want like $300k, well, just because she's a boss. And, her director is then going to want $400k because people with power titles should make the most.

(Oh, and, by the way, everyone knows that Mgr #1 is probably the best programmer at the company, but she's 40 now, and her salary got too high, and therefore she would have had to move under R&D director PostDoc. But, he only allows PhDs with the title of 'principal' to work for him. So, now she has to be a mediocre manager.)