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Architecture astronauts take over

joelonsoftware.com

61–70 of 79 posts

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#61
post #59
post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or Winamp.

Would you buy a computer to use Winamp? Or, perhaps more fair today: would you switch OSs to use it?

I bought an iPod a few years back just because it has, in firmware, a program just like WinAMp that let me play CDs I ripped to my hard drive as well as stuff I could download from the Internet.

Is that close enough?

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#62
post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or (dare I say it out loud)... Porn.

Again, would you BUY a computer to view porn?

Maybe not a computer, but I have it on good authority that a LOT of young males got internet access for porn, especially broadband internet access. The porn industry was streaming video on the net way before YouTube.

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#63
post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"there will be a lot more people going into CS as a major" Sadly, increasing quantity will probably have little impact on increasing quality.

I think it will have a big, negative impact on increasing quality.

how do you reason that?

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#64

It struck me after reading the article that the company who has solved synchronization is Apple. All of the data people really care about is on their iPhone/iPod. Contacts, photos, music, TV shows, movies, email, web access. When you think of it, iTunes main purpose is syncing and organizing your media. And with iTunes Store seamlessly syncs a lot of the data people care about from the Internet, also (for pay movies…

And interestingly, Apple isn't selling synchronization. They are selling products that use it, but only mention in passing the synchronization. Synchronization isn't a product, it is something you need for certain products.

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#65
post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it will have a big, negative impact on increasing quality.

how do you reason that?

I think a career in CS is already sufficiently attractive, for monetary and other considerations, that those who have a great potential and a passion for it already choose to pursue it.

So if we increase salaries a lot and this results in more people going into CS, I think it's pretty safe to say most of those additional recruits will be more in it for the money and less because that's what they should pursue, thus reducing the overall quality.

If programmer salaries went to 200k overnight, do you think the quality of undergrads would go up or down?

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#66
post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

how do you reason that?

I think a career in CS is already sufficiently attractive, for monetary and other considerations, that those who have a great potential and a passion for it already choose to pursue it. So if we increase salaries a lot and this results in more people going into CS, I think it's pretty safe to say most of those additional recruits will be more in it for the money and less because that's what they should pursue, thus r…

It would obviously go up or stay the same, following your logic. Even if the proportion of good programmers out of CS programs decreases there is no reason the real total number would go down.

[edit] If anything, the new influx of interested students would maybe counter a little the need for CS departments to dumb down the curriculum in order to stay above whatever arbitrary number. Maybe it would result in less JavaSchools. ;) [/edit]

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#67
post #59
post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or Winamp.

Would you buy a computer to use Winamp? Or, perhaps more fair today: would you switch OSs to use it?

No way. I use Amarok at home and love it. At work I have to use Windows, and used to be happy with iTunes - until I started having to update it every week (60MB download, no I don't want Safari, no I don't want to see the Quicktime icon, I'll check the box asking not to be propmted when there's a new version - oh, you're going to tell me anyway). Anyway, I thought I'd try Winamp again (I used it about seven years ago and liked it) - it doesn't seem capable of playing a CD without crashing. If anyone can recommend a free and/or open source media player for Windows I'd be grateful.

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#68
post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Would you buy a computer to use Winamp? Or, perhaps more fair today: would you switch OSs to use it?

No way. I use Amarok at home and love it. At work I have to use Windows, and used to be happy with iTunes - until I started having to update it every week (60MB download, no I don't want Safari, no I don't want to see the Quicktime icon, I'll check the box asking not to be propmted when there's a new version - oh, you're going to tell me anyway). Anyway, I thought I'd try Winamp again (I used it about seven years ago…

What version of Winamp did you use? There is a golden version: 2.91. Everything above is a perversion.

http://www.oldversion.com/program.php?n=winamp

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#69
post #59
post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or Winamp.

Would you buy a computer to use Winamp? Or, perhaps more fair today: would you switch OSs to use it?

No, but I do run a Windows machine just for Winamp.

I have friends that do the same and I've also seen a number of restaurants in Vancouver (Rugby Club), Montreal (Bières et Compagnie), and Haifa (Stella's?) that use it too (among other places).

Re: Architecture astronauts take over

#70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I also enjoyed the vast majority of the article, but I have to admit the last paragraph was annoying. It just seems like everything Joel writes these days (since he started his Road Show) is Submarine.[1] I realize everyone is going to talk about what they are doing, and Joel does Fog Creek, but I can't help getting that greasy used-car salesman feeling. I don't own Joel, and he owes me nothing, but it still makes me…

I guess blog posts are often glass half-empty/half-full thingies. It's totally valid to feel that the annoyance of the empty part of the glass outweighs the enjoyment of the half-full part. On my good days, I feel a lot more charitable about such things than on my bad days. It's dogs are sages all over again: http://weblog.raganwald.com/2007/03/programmers-are-sages.ht...

I reread your comment with fresh eyes and I can see the sarcasm now. I kind of feel like the Mitch Hedberg joke:

My friend said to me, "I think the weather's trippy." I said, "No, man, it's not the weather that's trippy, perhaps it is the way that we perceive it that is indeed trippy." Then I thought, "Man, I should've just said, 'Yeah.'"

Anyway, enjoy the coffee!

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