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Cowboy Engineers in the Software Industry

posted by janrinok on Sunday March 02 2014, @11:59PM   Printer-friendly
from the was-it-much-harder-in-my-day? dept.

shabadoo writes:

"Will software engineering always be a cowboy's game? Or is it just a case of when you're a passionate expert the pimples stand out more clearly. This guy has clearly had enough. His vents are amusing, but also raise some good points about the state of the industry."

 
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  • (Score: 1) by Grishnakh on Monday March 03 2014, @09:10PM

    by Grishnakh (2831) on Monday March 03 2014, @09:10PM (#10235)

    On one hand you have to keep your brain cursor on useful technologies for the company, on the other hand you have to reject incredibly broken designs.

    And what if that goes directly against what your boss wants? You seem to be assuming that companies are well-run and managers are intelligent and knowledgeable. When you're an employee, your job is to your boss's bidding. If he wants you to implement a nonsensical braindead idea, that's what you do.

    So if you find an attitude that halts or hinders your personal development it IS advised to swim upstream or change job.

    You can only do this so much. If you jump around too much, you're seen as a liability. Plus, this isn't very good for your financial state.

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  • (Score: 1) by neagix on Monday March 03 2014, @09:45PM

    by neagix (25) on Monday March 03 2014, @09:45PM (#10256)

    I am not assuming that utopian world you described, but saying that it is worth your sanity to look for a middle ground.

    Regarding the "if you jump around too much" point: what if some people are fine with bending and others are not? Sorry but I am not buying the scaremonger "wisdom". I will simply work for those companies that do not see me as a liability but as a resource, problem solved.

  • (Score: 1) by cafebabe on Tuesday March 04 2014, @07:26PM

    by cafebabe (894) on Tuesday March 04 2014, @07:26PM (#10891) Journal

    When you're an employee, your job is to your boss's bidding. If he wants you to implement a nonsensical braindead idea, that's what you do.

    Your job as an employee is to maximize shareholder value. If you're out of a job, your colleagues are out of a job and your boss is out of a job, that's because shareholder value is zero and no-one done their job properly.

    I'll admit that it can be very difficult to say "Your idea blows goats" in a manner which is diplomatic but you're dis-honorable to ignore it and you make the computer industry look amateur.

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    1702845791×2

    • (Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Tuesday March 04 2014, @08:07PM

      by Grishnakh (2831) on Tuesday March 04 2014, @08:07PM (#10916)

      Then by that definition, every industry is "amateur". I don't know of any industry where you can tell your boss he's an idiot and his idea is stupid and expect to keep your job for long. Yes, you can be more diplomatic, but after you've made your case, his word is sovereign, so when he tells you to implement the nonsensical braindead idea, that's your job. You can go over his head to his boss, but that's a sure recipe for disaster.