31–40 of 52 posts
Because we don't have a girlfriend.
"we" are not necessarily interested in having a girlfriend. We could be interested in having boyfriends. One or several. Or none at all. Or someone not specifically characterized by a gender. Or by another gender not listed here.
I think the "brutal pragmatism" and corpo SWEs have always been an opposing force to the hacking spirit. Catch phrases include, but not limited to: - don't reinvent the wheel - right tool for the job - use a library - time to market - customers don't care about X - premature optimization I hack because it's the expression of the exact freedom that made me interested in computers in the first place. Discouraging devel…
"Product" is the problem here, right? A product is a
1) Finished complete shrink-wrapped thing
2) that someone else can't have unless they give you money for it.
Both of these characteristics strike me as part of an incredibly bad model for "making good software."
I think the "brutal pragmatism" and corpo SWEs have always been an opposing force to the hacking spirit. Catch phrases include, but not limited to: - don't reinvent the wheel - right tool for the job - use a library - time to market - customers don't care about X - premature optimization I hack because it's the expression of the exact freedom that made me interested in computers in the first place. Discouraging devel…
Except for one, all of the above are good bits of wisdom, not reinventing wheels, using the right tool for the job, reuse of libraries, quick time to user - to get feedback. All great engineering - whether you are building for the masses or just yourself to scratch an itch. But one that cuts to the core of a deep problem in computing and sticks out to me is; "customers don't care about X" That's so broken it's not ev…
I think the "brutal pragmatism" and corpo SWEs have always been an opposing force to the hacking spirit. Catch phrases include, but not limited to: - don't reinvent the wheel - right tool for the job - use a library - time to market - customers don't care about X - premature optimization I hack because it's the expression of the exact freedom that made me interested in computers in the first place. Discouraging devel…
100% "Product" is the problem here, right? A product is a 1) Finished complete shrink-wrapped thing 2) that someone else can't have unless they give you money for it. Both of these characteristics strike me as part of an incredibly bad model for "making good software."
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Then, where does being a "maker" even start? One will always end up using something someone else created, or discovered, whether it is a library, a language, an OS, hardware... Even if you build your own computer from scratch using materials you gathered, you still did not "create" the raw components, did you? All of this is only but a paraphrase of this famous quote from Carl Sagan: "If you wish to make an apple pie…
Is Frankenstein human? Configuration is not creation.
My point is that the line is blurry. "Configuring" a system with a large amount of parameters can be considered "creating something". A good example is how the knobs on a synthesizer can be tweaked to achieve a peculiar sound.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Except for one, all of the above are good bits of wisdom, not reinventing wheels, using the right tool for the job, reuse of libraries, quick time to user - to get feedback. All great engineering - whether you are building for the masses or just yourself to scratch an itch. But one that cuts to the core of a deep problem in computing and sticks out to me is; "customers don't care about X" That's so broken it's not ev…
Right? You could theoretically/evilly create a whole guide to "how to change a customer's mind on what they want."
Earlier quoted context omitted.
"don't reinvent the wheel" The single worst piece of advice that I consistently see repeated. If you're product is a bunch of APIs, you're a user not a maker.
'Don't reinvent the wheel' is a big reason I've put off almost all side projects that I've wanted to do. Everything I've thought of, someone else has already written, and it's quite demoralising. I end up thinking, 'what's the point?'
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Is Frankenstein human? Configuration is not creation.
Whether Frankenstein is human or not is the question directly asked by Mary Shelley's book. As in our "making or not" problem, ironically, the answer is neither black nor white, as the monster is alive, yet made of dead flesh, and can be cruel, yet display human-like sensibility. My point is that the line is blurry. "Configuring" a system with a large amount of parameters can be considered "creating something". A goo…
Does the producer create music or simply refine it? Does the answer change when the recording artist is also the producer? What if the artist is not the producer or composer?
I think the "brutal pragmatism" and corpo SWEs have always been an opposing force to the hacking spirit. Catch phrases include, but not limited to: - don't reinvent the wheel - right tool for the job - use a library - time to market - customers don't care about X - premature optimization I hack because it's the expression of the exact freedom that made me interested in computers in the first place. Discouraging devel…
However, I have become a bit more defeated and jaded. I have honestly just come to the realization over time that if I want to scratch my hacking itch, then I will just have to do it on my own time with my own projects. My employer and coworkers do not care. Much like others' experiences, my employer actually frowns upon such ventures.
My employer wants things done as fast as possible, with whatever library, with us not reinventing the wheel, etc.. That's what they pay me for, and I suppose that is what I am obligated deliver.
I feel a lot of empathy for artists and musicians and the struggles and compromises they have made in order to "make it." I feel like us hackers must do the same.