What Makes a Great Software Engineer? [pdf] • Hacker News Board

Re: What Makes a Great Software Engineer? [pdf]

#131

Post by lemondrops » Tue, Dec 12, 2017, 1:52 PM UTC

TeMPOraL wrote: post #95

lr4444lr wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I admit some envy of people who find their passion early and make the most of every year of their life leading up to a career, but if he's so smart and driven, why is he working at some "boring tech" company as a cog under some layer management? Why doesn't he consult solo and reap the fruit of his precociousness?

> I admit some envy of people who find their passion early and make the most of every year of their life leading up to a career Don't. At least some of us are having a bad time working because of it. I found programming in my early teenage years, and - excuse me if I sound arrogant - by now, I've already seen or worked with anything even remotely interesting programming-wise that a regular coding dayjob could throw a…

I never saw it that way before -- but as someone who found programming in their early teenage years too, this sounds very familiar. I still feel a sense of excitement when I learn something new, but it wears off very quickly because most new technologies are just another way of doing the things you did before. E.g. I got to learn Type Script recently, but after a couple of days of getting used to the syntax it felt just like all the other frontend frameworks out there... It's true that most regular coding dayjobs mainly consist of gluing together libraries and solving (often) self inflicted problems, and it's so frustrating!

Re: What Makes a Great Software Engineer? [pdf]

#132

Post by Aaargh20318 » Tue, Dec 12, 2017, 3:12 PM UTC

jwdunne wrote: post #130

Aaargh20318 wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Use our planets limited resources because you think your DNA needs to survive ? Of course it's selfish. Give one reason to have children that doesn't include words like "I want".

Give one reason why you do anything you do without "I want". Wanting something isn't selfish. It entirely depends on what it is you actually want. Oh yes, you could argue from a hardcore libertarian stance that altruism does not exist and every action is inherently selfish but is that a good way of looking at the world? I think not.

> is that a good way of looking at the world? I think not.

Define 'good' ? It's an accurate way of looking at the world. You can try to convince yourself otherwise but you don't really live in that world.

Re: What Makes a Great Software Engineer? [pdf]

#133

Post by [deleted] » Tue, Dec 12, 2017, 5:36 PM UTC

vmarsy wrote: post #13

I don't get the "9 to 5 wouldn't make you a great engineer" about not being passionate, some people are passionate but have other life obligations like kids or other activities. Being personable: "Can I have a beer with this guy?" is the worse in my opinion. I care about your professional skills and if you're communicating well, but you definitely don't have to be a beer buddy, we might have 15 years difference, a ve…

[deleted]

Re: What Makes a Great Software Engineer? [pdf]

#134

Post by jwdunne » Thu, Dec 14, 2017, 7:08 AM UTC

Aaargh20318 wrote: post #132

jwdunne wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Give one reason why you do anything you do without "I want". Wanting something isn't selfish. It entirely depends on what it is you actually want. Oh yes, you could argue from a hardcore libertarian stance that altruism does not exist and every action is inherently selfish but is that a good way of looking at the world? I think not.

> is that a good way of looking at the world? I think not. Define 'good' ? It's an accurate way of looking at the world. You can try to convince yourself otherwise but you don't really live in that world.

If it's an accurate way of looking at the world, you've just demolished your own reasons for not having kids.

You don't want kids because it's selfish? That must mean, using objectivist reasoning, that to you not having kids is even more selfish. So your reason for not having kids is no reason at all if you subscribe to that sort of shit.

As for good, in the same way that you reduce a lot of things down to one thing that is objectively true but isn't really useful for everyday life.

Sure, I accept that it's possible to reduce down and argue all behaviours are selfish. Does that provide insights about the world? Nope. Does it explain human behaviour adequately, even if fundamentally accurate? "Why does inequality negatively impact inequality?" Because people are selfish?