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25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

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Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#171

Post by mac01021 »

pojzon wrote: post #149
rbanffy wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

:-) > By this metric, most of humanity probably feels it worthless, isn't it? Everyone can produce something outstanding. We often confuse that with the recognition that comes from that something becoming noticed by others. Do something you love, for the love of doing it. Of course, keep the family happy, fed, and housed, but never forget we are more than work and money and that our worth is not derived from how othe…

Majority of ppl dont really know what they want from life and need someone to tell them that. The reason why so many are depressed and unhappy no matter what they do.

Sadly, you can't tell them by telling them. You have to be subliminal.

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#172

Post by cgrealy »

readingnews wrote: post #5

No offense, but you claim you have been "officially coding for 25 years now". You state you are 36. Were you really, officially doing anything at 11 years of age. What does that mean? I was a solder tech at 13 years old. I NEVER throw that out there in any blog or write up, even though I was _literally_ getting a paycheck from a company. Does that make me an official solder tech? Hell no. When people ask how much exp…

Exercise for anyone who thinks that your programming as kid counts. Apply for a job as a senior dev that requires 10 years experience when you're 21.

See how interview offers you get....

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#173

Post by jmatthews »

orev wrote: post #3

What every salary-person has to show for it: a life lived; bills paid; food on the table; health; a roof over your head; a body not ravaged and damaged by hard labor; the ability to relax and have some entertainment in the evening; a place to sleep; comfort; relative stability; the ability to make a living using mostly just your brain. Yes, perspective is important, and I’m not saying one should not strive to make mo…

As devil's advocate... The majority of your waking life is then spent satisfying the newest version of "subsistence ".

It is true that new subsistence is better than old subsistence, but its still serfdom with nicer clothes.

The chase, at least for me, is about having time and location freedom while enjoying a middle class living or better. It's not about being a billionaire, it's about being free.

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#174

Post by james_s_tayler »

ellius wrote: post #148
james_s_tayler wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You could be an Anarcho-Nativist and go back to living in tribal, hunter-gatherer societies and spend all day foraging for and hunting food just to survive and have nothing to show for it. But it's Capatilisms fault.

You're assuming that I'm implying capitalism is "bad" and that no other form of society could produce the same effect. I don't believe either of those things. I've actually made many pro-capitalism comments on HN before. But it's sort of thoughtless to conclude it has to be one or the other. A complex system can have both good and bad effects.

Not assuming anything about your personal beliefs per-se but imagine we're friends and I know you well and we're having a philosophical discussion over some beers and it's an offhanded, sarcastic comment I chime in with to pillory those who would take such a statement as "see, it's capitalism's fault!"

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#175

Post by rabidrat »

ryanwaggoner wrote: post #21
steve_taylor wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You forgot to mention millions of dollars of value created for other people.

Maybe. Or maybe you got paid a salary and benefits for years by a business that then failed and took all of the owner’s investment and opportunity cost with it. The point is, if you think that it’s just so easy and starting a business means you get to reap the benefits of someone else’s hard work, then go for it. Why doesn’t everyone do that?

Large amounts of debt (student loans) and lack of access to capital. I have several friends who have started their own business, which turns out to be "consulting to pay the bills and trying to balance the remaining 20% of time towards new-product development and finding more consulting clients". They are all but doomed from the start because the leftover scraps of time between consulting gigs is not sufficient to really create a viable product or business. If they could raise a half million and give it a serious go, their chances would increase substantially.

Of course it's not a sure thing, but a) neither is it with most of the startups that raise a seed round, and b) failure without seed money doesn't mean "aw shucks, it didn't work out, I'll try again in a couple years", it means their personal finances and credit have been decimated and now they can spend the next N years clawing their way back to zero (remember the student loans they still have).

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#176

Post by rabidrat »

seizethecheese wrote: post #40
jacquesm wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm guessing Paul Graham has never restored a beat up car to pristine condition. Your pristine condition car that will fetch you less than the new parts you put in when you sell it at what the market will pay for it. Restoring beat up cars to new state is a losing game unless someone pays you to do the work, except for some rare collectibles, which I am assuming are not your personal beat up car. And even then chance…

This metaphor really has nothing to do with car restoration. He assumes in the example the car would be worth more.

And that assumption is fundamentally incorrect, and not just coincidentally.

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#177

Post by fizwhiz »

jmatthews wrote: post #173
orev wrote: post #3

What every salary-person has to show for it: a life lived; bills paid; food on the table; health; a roof over your head; a body not ravaged and damaged by hard labor; the ability to relax and have some entertainment in the evening; a place to sleep; comfort; relative stability; the ability to make a living using mostly just your brain. Yes, perspective is important, and I’m not saying one should not strive to make mo…

As devil's advocate... The majority of your waking life is then spent satisfying the newest version of "subsistence ". It is true that new subsistence is better than old subsistence, but its still serfdom with nicer clothes. The chase, at least for me, is about having time and location freedom while enjoying a middle class living or better. It's not about being a billionaire, it's about being free.

no snark meant, but do you have a family? How close have you converged to becoming a digital nomad (which is what you seem to imply your chase is all about)?

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#178

Post by fizwhiz »

justaguyhere wrote: post #137
ratsimihah wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe some of us tend to mix up "a life lived" with overachieving. In other words, we only feel it worth if we produce something truly outstanding.

In other words, we only feel it worth if we produce something truly outstanding By this metric, most of humanity probably feels it worthless, isn't it? I understand this is HN and people here achieve more than the normal crowd - still, I don't get the obsession over being productive every second, the need to "produce something truly outstanding" etc. Whats wrong with just being happy, taking it easy, spreading happin…

> I understand this is HN and people here achieve more than the normal crowd

Citation needed?

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#179

Post by rbanffy »

mac01021 wrote: post #171
pojzon wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Majority of ppl dont really know what they want from life and need someone to tell them that. The reason why so many are depressed and unhappy no matter what they do.

Sadly, you can't tell them by telling them. You have to be subliminal.

You may even figure out what they want, but they still will need to find it out by themselves.

Re: 25 years of coding, and I'm just beginning

#180

Post by jmatthews »

fizwhiz wrote: post #177
jmatthews wrote: post #173

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As devil's advocate... The majority of your waking life is then spent satisfying the newest version of "subsistence ". It is true that new subsistence is better than old subsistence, but its still serfdom with nicer clothes. The chase, at least for me, is about having time and location freedom while enjoying a middle class living or better. It's not about being a billionaire, it's about being free.

no snark meant, but do you have a family? How close have you converged to becoming a digital nomad (which is what you seem to imply your chase is all about)?

I do have a family, and I find that very fulfilling. I do bemoan the time I have to spend working for others as time I'll not get back. Honestly having my first son really changed the math for me. I went from deriving joy from a job well done to realizing that time could have been better spent. Instead of being a good employee I am now trying to be a great dad. Work definitely gets in the way of that.
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