Live data from Hacker News

I’m young, inexperienced and a perfectionist

medium.com

11–20 of 139 posts

Re: I’m young, inexperienced and a perfectionist

#12
post #5

In all seriousness I believe I have pretty sharp Internet sarcasm detection skills but I can't tell without more context how much of this post is sarcasm? If others didn't see it that way, can you re-read it again through a "this is pure dripping sarcasm" lens/filter? I read it as a sarcastic detailed break down of the excuses new developers use nowadays to justify their lack of discipline. Or.. am I wrong?

You're reading too much into it, it looks like straightforward self-deprecation to me.

Re: I’m young, inexperienced and a perfectionist

#14
post #5

In all seriousness I believe I have pretty sharp Internet sarcasm detection skills but I can't tell without more context how much of this post is sarcasm? If others didn't see it that way, can you re-read it again through a "this is pure dripping sarcasm" lens/filter? I read it as a sarcastic detailed break down of the excuses new developers use nowadays to justify their lack of discipline. Or.. am I wrong?

Funny, I read it as a entirely sincere account of his tribulations. I think the title of "Don't hire me!" has put people off, because it sounds absurd. But maybe the whole thing is absurd, and I completely missed the sarcasm.

Re: I’m young, inexperienced and a perfectionist

#15
post #5

In all seriousness I believe I have pretty sharp Internet sarcasm detection skills but I can't tell without more context how much of this post is sarcasm? If others didn't see it that way, can you re-read it again through a "this is pure dripping sarcasm" lens/filter? I read it as a sarcastic detailed break down of the excuses new developers use nowadays to justify their lack of discipline. Or.. am I wrong?

It's that even more annoying modern invention: post-irony, where the writer doesn't have any faith in their own ideas so they hedge their bets with this strange kind of noncommittal sarcasm. It is the plague of the modern age, and the real reason why hipsterism is so hateworthy.

If possible, I tend to look up words/terms I've not heard of: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-irony

... are you saying in my effort in sounding all serious and sincere, that I, in fact, align myself with hipster philosophy and world views?

Re: I’m young, inexperienced and a perfectionist

#17
That's why I still use vanilla PHP & Postgres for web projects. I don't use any hot new technologies, I don't use frameworks, I don't do unit testing. I try to use as little client side JS as possible. Whenever possible, I use static HTML.

The advantage is that I can create a working prototype in days. I can show something to the client very early, and I don't spend months to fulfill specifications the client didn't really understand in the first place.

When I leave the project, any PHP developer will be able to pick up and implement changes within hours. My code isn't elegant in any way, but it's simple.

Re: I’m young, inexperienced and a perfectionist

#18

I think coding kinda forms us to be perfectionists, because a small mistake can disable entire programs. I'll share my epiphany that I've learned from HN that PG said...if we're not embarrassed at launch time, it's too late. Being a perfectionist my self, it's a brilliant statement.

Reid Hoffman, founder of LinkedIn, has a similar quote, "If you're not embarrassed by the first version of your product, you've launched too late." I don't know if one came before the other. Reguardless it's a good sentiment to have. The only thing that matters is launching. You can find the perfect shade of blue for that button after you launch.

Re: I’m young, inexperienced and a perfectionist

#19

I think coding kinda forms us to be perfectionists, because a small mistake can disable entire programs. I'll share my epiphany that I've learned from HN that PG said...if we're not embarrassed at launch time, it's too late. Being a perfectionist my self, it's a brilliant statement.

I don't know I've met my fair share of lazy "good enough" programmers that happily reuse code they wrote months, even years ago.
Post reply on HN