If you don't have the desire to do this after work you probably shouldn't even be in the field is how I look at it.
It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
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Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#12I don't get this. It is like being an accomplished painter, but never painting anything for yourself. Or a carpenter, and not making your own table or chairs. As a coder, you have the ability to create almost anything. How can that knowledge not tempt you to create something yourself?
This honestly comes off as a bit superior. It makes sense when people are like how you've described - it doesn't not make sense when they are not.
Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#13I don't get this. It is like being an accomplished painter, but never painting anything for yourself. Or a carpenter, and not making your own table or chairs. As a coder, you have the ability to create almost anything. How can that knowledge not tempt you to create something yourself?
A lot of times people have invention assignment agreements which make it really hard to have their own independent projects.
Is this actually enforceable though? Asking for a friend.
Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#14I really wanted to code my own side projects in my spare time. I always have so much ideas that I become anxious when will I have time for them all.
But during my spare time, which I would like to designate to my own projects, life kicks in. Something breaks, an old friend is back in town, I don't feel well, there is a recipe I want to try or my girlfriend and I want to have a day outdoors because we didn't have enough quality time together during the week. Then Sunday evening comes and I become sad because I'm far behind my own plans.
But the most important thing I was missing is thet I actually enjoy stuff beyond coding. I was so concentrated on it that I stopped being thankful for all of the detours that make my life complete and meaningful. Tonight I'm going to change the mixer tap at my folks home, and I'm glad I'll make them happy and life a bit more comfortable. My buddy is back, so latter were going out for drinks, we're gonna have a ball. And I actually love those things, it's refreshing. Yes I would like to brush up on some fresher skills or try out the latest AWS Blazefeather. And I will eventually. But I realized that other stuff in life makes me also a calm and enjoyable person, and personality and temper is also a part of an engineers value.
Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#15If you don't have the desire to do this after work you probably shouldn't even be in the field is how I look at it.
Maybe people enjoy programming enough to make it their job, but to go home and relax afterwards? Who wants to do the same thing 24/7?
Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#16I don't get this. It is like being an accomplished painter, but never painting anything for yourself. Or a carpenter, and not making your own table or chairs. As a coder, you have the ability to create almost anything. How can that knowledge not tempt you to create something yourself?
Programming is not by itself an art, so it doesn't fulfill people's self-expression needs (although it may contain bits of art like e.g. video games).
You cannot create "almost anything" with coding, it's not like I can bake fries by typing some code.
I do not write this in jest, I just find that people tend to overestimate coding.
Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#17If you don't have the desire to do this after work you probably shouldn't even be in the field is how I look at it.
If you're serious, the way I look at it is that people like you are one of the problems with tech culture. Way too many people in tech have this attitude that there's something exceptional and unique about it that requires participants to be all-in 24 hours a day. It's not. And this sort of attitude discourages a large swath of the population from bringing their talents to the field.
Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#18Earlier quoted context omitted.
A lot of times people have invention assignment agreements which make it really hard to have their own independent projects.
Is this actually enforceable though? Asking for a friend.
I'm sure it depends on local laws but, in many cases, absolutely if the company wants to try to enforce it. At a minimum, they can make you spend a lot of money on lawyers.
Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#19I don't get this. It is like being an accomplished painter, but never painting anything for yourself. Or a carpenter, and not making your own table or chairs. As a coder, you have the ability to create almost anything. How can that knowledge not tempt you to create something yourself?
Programming is not by itself an art, so it doesn't fulfill people's self-expression needs (although it may contain bits of art like e.g. video games). You cannot create "almost anything" with coding, it's not like I can bake fries by typing some code. I do not write this in jest, I just find that people tend to overestimate coding.
I think coding is different things to different people. So sometimes it’s hard to sync up and have a useful conversation.
I believe you can create anything with coding. You can automate home routines. You can figure how the best dose of vitamins and supplements. You can optimize finances. It’s pretty limitless. Not to mention staring at a screen, giving it commands and seeing the result for hours just being fun. In both a meditative way and a discovering secrets way.
But for many people, it’s a job and not interesting in and of itself.
Someone mentioned painting and there are painters who make art and do it for expression. And there are painters who paint houses. They are both fine professions and really just a choice or an orientation. I don’t do either, but I think the artist painter will do lots of side projects outside her studio while the house painter is less likely to paint too many houses pro bono.
This doesn’t mean programmers who code outside of work are superior humans. I think any company who has this as a binary hiring decision is missing out that there are great programmers who don’t do it out of passion. I once worked with a programmer who didn’t own a computer (in 2005) and he was good. And there are hobby programmers who suck at work even though they have lots of personal projects.
Re: It is perfectly OK to only code at work, you can have a life too
#20If you don't have the desire to do this after work you probably shouldn't even be in the field is how I look at it.
Maybe people enjoy programming enough to make it their job, but to go home and relax afterwards? Who wants to do the same thing 24/7?
It's not even about wanting to do it. Doing anything on the metaphorical 24/7 will burn people out.