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Life's too short to write shitty software

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Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#11

Post by edwinnathaniel »

This piece of article is definitely targeted :). Kind of like self-help but for geeks. Nice SEO though.

That aside, I believe people can find a niche developing software targeting these soul-crushing jobs. Basically have a product that solve problems people hate to deal with.

Java EJB 1.0 and Struts sucks? Write your own framework, call it Spring Framework: worth $400M. JDBC sucks? Make Hibernate.

Dealing with Rails deployment sucks? Cloud hard? Come up with Heroku.

Silo-ed web-apps, always have to custom build CMS and comes up with your own workflow? Build SharePoint: $1B market.

Configuring and maintaining WordPress are not interesting? I heard WPEngine is making money left-and-right...

I learned that before you can call yourself a real entrepreneur, you should learn to get over yourself on these "shitty" stuff because what if you got your dream job but is interrupted with "shitty" stuff in between? Call it quit again?

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#12

Post by edw519 »

For those of you now browsing Hacker News at his cubicle during his break under soul-sucking fluorescent lights:

You can have it both ways (work for BigCo and build cool stuff), but it's not easy. You have to make it happen within the corporate systems and structure.

I have many times. A few examples:

- Boss to me: "Purchasing is complaining that the legacy system isn't doing what it should. Go find out what they need." 3 weeks later, my prototype is the basis for specs for a whole new system. "But you told me to."

- PM/BA to me: "I can't make it to the status meeting. Will you run it for me?" "Sure." Results: 3 new projects at the top of my queue. What the customer wants most and what will be fun to build.

- Big Boss in meeting: "I don't think corporate will approve $2 million for a Data Warehouse/Business Intelligence system, but we have to do something." One month later, after squeezing it in to my spare time: an MVP of a BI system that the users love and was fun to build. Now I get permission to finish it.

- Another boss: "I would love to sell our stuff on Amazon, but I don't know how to go about it." Me: "Want me to find out?" Boss: "Yes." A month later, we're on Amazon. Fun project.

- User VP: "Why do we have to wait 3 years to get anything done on our legacy system?" Me: "Send the quick critical stuff directly to me. I'll try to push it through faster." Almost always leads to building something cool.

The 3 keys to doing these kinds of things:

1. You must find the cool stuff to build yourself. No one's going to hand them to you. Opportunities are everywhere.

2. You'll probably have to make time for extra work. Shouldn't be a problem if you're a good programmer in an enterprise.

3. You'll probably have to hang your cool new stuff off something legacy. So what?

Maybe not as good as building something in a startup for the first time ever, but building is building. You can find a way to build cool stuff from whereever you are right now. "Finding a way" is the key.

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#13

Post by Poiesis »

A startup's not a panacea, but--man, he sure knows what buttons to push.

This is for the guy who browses Hacker News at his cubicle during his break under soul-sucking fluorescent lights

...that's 10 hours of your workday that is devoted to your job.

The Java Struts web app that you're working on needs to be able to support IE 6, especially because you're not able to install Firefox or Chrome on your locked down desktop.

I could add so much, but he's got the big ones. How about "browsing HN from your smartphone because of the proxy"? We're actually working startup hours here, so combined with a large family it's difficult to get the time to work on the side project. Luckily there are people out there who have demonstrated that it can be done under similar constraints (looking at you, Patrick).

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#14

Post by pelemele »

Roboprog wrote: post #8

While I sympathize, my wife and kids need to eat now , not in 2 years when I pull equity out of an IPO. If you can avoid the TPS-report-factory-factory (wink), by all means do so. But don't look down on those who are doing what they have to. There's something to be said for knocking off after 8 hours, and going home to one's family as well. What I do is technically boring, but necessary, and doesn't consume my person…

If you are sure that you will be able to market yourself after years of working on some no name corporate stuff, by all means. I've been there and seen guys working 10 - 12 years at the same company, enjoying their 8 hours shift just finding out one day that they are not needed anymore - and with obsolete skills set (you get into comfort zone pretty easily in corp world), some of them having really difficult time to find another job.

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#15

Post by gaius »

edw519 wrote: post #12

For those of you now browsing Hacker News at his cubicle during his break under soul-sucking fluorescent lights : You can have it both ways (work for BigCo and build cool stuff), but it's not easy. You have to make it happen within the corporate systems and structure. I have many times. A few examples: - Boss to me: "Purchasing is complaining that the legacy system isn't doing what it should. Go find out what they ne…

"It is easier to ask forgiveness than permission".

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#16

Post by gaius »

edwinnathaniel wrote: post #11

This piece of article is definitely targeted :). Kind of like self-help but for geeks. Nice SEO though. That aside, I believe people can find a niche developing software targeting these soul-crushing jobs. Basically have a product that solve problems people hate to deal with. Java EJB 1.0 and Struts sucks? Write your own framework, call it Spring Framework: worth $400M. JDBC sucks? Make Hibernate. Dealing with Rails…

JDBC sucks? Make Hibernate.

Because JDBC didn't suck enough...

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#17

Post by edwinnathaniel »

edw519 wrote: post #12

For those of you now browsing Hacker News at his cubicle during his break under soul-sucking fluorescent lights : You can have it both ways (work for BigCo and build cool stuff), but it's not easy. You have to make it happen within the corporate systems and structure. I have many times. A few examples: - Boss to me: "Purchasing is complaining that the legacy system isn't doing what it should. Go find out what they ne…

You sir, are "Getting things Done!".

You are the real-deal.

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#18

Post by fusiongyro »

pelemele wrote: post #14
Roboprog wrote: post #8

While I sympathize, my wife and kids need to eat now , not in 2 years when I pull equity out of an IPO. If you can avoid the TPS-report-factory-factory (wink), by all means do so. But don't look down on those who are doing what they have to. There's something to be said for knocking off after 8 hours, and going home to one's family as well. What I do is technically boring, but necessary, and doesn't consume my person…

If you are sure that you will be able to market yourself after years of working on some no name corporate stuff, by all means. I've been there and seen guys working 10 - 12 years at the same company, enjoying their 8 hours shift just finding out one day that they are not needed anymore - and with obsolete skills set (you get into comfort zone pretty easily in corp world), some of them having really difficult time to…

I have a hard time imagining that this guy reading HN is going to let his/her skills become obsolete. Besides that, was there really no writing on the wall? They really had 40 hours of work to do every week, and then suddenly none, with no warning?

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#19

Post by benblodgett »

Poiesis wrote: post #13

A startup's not a panacea, but--man, he sure knows what buttons to push. This is for the guy who browses Hacker News at his cubicle during his break under soul-sucking fluorescent lights ...that's 10 hours of your workday that is devoted to your job. The Java Struts web app that you're working on needs to be able to support IE 6, especially because you're not able to install Firefox or Chrome on your locked down desk…

"This is for the guy who browses Hacker News at his cubicle during his break under soul-sucking fluorescent lights."

Described my previous-life to a T, best decision I ever made was leaving those fluorescent lights.

Re: Life's too short to write shitty software

#20

Post by paulhauggis »

kirinan wrote: post #5

Im sitting my in my cubical hating my job right this moment. I applied to ycombinator and I will escape cubical hell. If you've never held a corporate job, you are lucky. It sucks your soul and crushes your dream. The anti-ambition of people around me is discouraging and depressing. I work on software that is meaningless, and that just kills you inside. Its the feeling that you are spending days/months/years of your…

It's worse knowing you are slaving away your life (which can't be replaced) only to make someone else rich and get a sliver of the profits. Oh yeah, if the wind blows the wrong way, the boss may just decide your are fired and all of your hard work is no longer yours.

I quit my job 2 years ago after I saved enough money to live on for a year (which took 4 years). I always hated working for other people. I not only couldn't be honest to questions like "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?" (I can't exactly say "working for myself" but it felt like I was in Jail.

I despise having to ask my boss when I can take a day off or go on a vacation. I'm about to launch my next company and I've contemplated working part-time to bring in some extra income for some business expenses.

Whenever I start the interview process, I feel like I'm back in high school again. Mostly because I feel like I should be interviewing other people for my business and not the other way around.

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