Shouldn't programmers know how to fix computers?
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lewax00 wrote:
But those cases are a significantly different, the computer is your tool and you should know how to maintain your own tools.
I know someone who drives a dump truck for a living. And he takes it to a mechanic for all maintenance. I am pretty sure electricians don't cast their own screw drivers nor build their own wire strippers. And when those tools break they go buy another one. Other than that could you provide an analogous occupation where the participants use tools and maintain those tools?
jschell wrote:
Other than that could you provide an analogous occupation where the participants use tools and maintain those tools?
As part of my apprenticeship we took tool making where I learnt to make screwdrivers and chisels and so on. When I started to work for real I bought all my tools (from Snap-On: beautiful kit - still have some) but would sharpen my chisels and drills, make the odd specialist tool or fix, where I could, anything else or just give it back to the Snap-On man for a new one. One of the most important aspects was keeping your tools clean and in good condition (you make a living with them) so my tool box and tools were always clean and shiny. Never, ever, ever lend tools to anyone.
"If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." Red Adair. nils illegitimus carborundum me, me, me
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jschell wrote:
Other than that could you provide an analogous occupation where the participants use tools and maintain those tools?
As part of my apprenticeship we took tool making where I learnt to make screwdrivers and chisels and so on. When I started to work for real I bought all my tools (from Snap-On: beautiful kit - still have some) but would sharpen my chisels and drills, make the odd specialist tool or fix, where I could, anything else or just give it back to the Snap-On man for a new one. One of the most important aspects was keeping your tools clean and in good condition (you make a living with them) so my tool box and tools were always clean and shiny. Never, ever, ever lend tools to anyone.
"If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." Red Adair. nils illegitimus carborundum me, me, me
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you ryanb31, are a boob.
"the meat from that butcher is just the dogs danglies, absolutely amazing cuts of beef." - DaveAuld (2011)
"No, that is just the earthly manifestation of the Great God Retardon." - Nagy Vilmos (2011) "It is the celestial scrotum of good luck!" - Nagy Vilmos (2011) -
Not at our small company.
There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.
That was kinda my point. You were generalising it like if everyone should be fixing their own BSODs and stuff. While I agree that someone - anyone writing code with me should know how to deal with a situation like that, I wouldn't want them to spend any time doing that. If I've a bsod on my machine, I'll continue work on my 'other' machine. And if that fails, there's the laptop. If that fails too, I'll raise a high priority helpdesk ticket (showstopper level), send an email to my manager, and go home. It may be a different story in a small company, but my opinion is that the kind of money they pay us programmers will be justified only if we spend our hours productively, doing our work. Not fixing a BSOD.
"Real men drive manual transmission" - Rajesh.
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I know how to drive, however when my car breaks down I don't necessarily know the intricacies of how the electronics and mechanics of my car contributed to the breakdown... That's what I pay a mechanic to know...
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
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This is about the same as running scan disk and defrag, and writing software.
If it moves, compile it
Perhaps. :-)
"If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." Red Adair. nils illegitimus carborundum me, me, me
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That was kinda my point. You were generalising it like if everyone should be fixing their own BSODs and stuff. While I agree that someone - anyone writing code with me should know how to deal with a situation like that, I wouldn't want them to spend any time doing that. If I've a bsod on my machine, I'll continue work on my 'other' machine. And if that fails, there's the laptop. If that fails too, I'll raise a high priority helpdesk ticket (showstopper level), send an email to my manager, and go home. It may be a different story in a small company, but my opinion is that the kind of money they pay us programmers will be justified only if we spend our hours productively, doing our work. Not fixing a BSOD.
"Real men drive manual transmission" - Rajesh.
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Does it drive anyone else bonkers when developers keep complaining about their windows PC blue screening? If you know how to program why can't you figure out how to fix your own computer, or at least start researching?
There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.
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Does it drive anyone else bonkers when developers keep complaining about their windows PC blue screening? If you know how to program why can't you figure out how to fix your own computer, or at least start researching?
There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.
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This is about the same as running scan disk and defrag, and writing software.
If it moves, compile it
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you ryanb31, are a boob.
"the meat from that butcher is just the dogs danglies, absolutely amazing cuts of beef." - DaveAuld (2011)
"No, that is just the earthly manifestation of the Great God Retardon." - Nagy Vilmos (2011) "It is the celestial scrotum of good luck!" - Nagy Vilmos (2011) -
I have to agree. I know which I would prefer to stare at for half an hour.
Ideological Purity is no substitute for being able to stick your thumb down a pipe to stop the water
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And installing drivers is any different? That fixes most hardware issues. And looking up error codes from hardware is no different than looking up error codes from software.
Looking up error codes from software is quite a bit different, at least to me, as getting the correct drivers. You are also assuming that I know how to get by the blue screen. As far as I knew/know when you see the blue screen you are hosed. I also couldn't assume that most errors come from drivers, and even if I did that still wouldn't account for the one's that didn't.
If it moves, compile it
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I don't think you diserved the low votes, but yes I reckon you're right.
Software Kinetics Wear a hard hat it's under construction
Metro RSS -
That's fair. And as I said, shouldn't they know how to fix them? Whether they do or not, they should at least know how.
There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.
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Are you kidding?? Right now, I wish "programmers" would figure out how to write code! But, since they have no experience with their own PC, the basics of how Windows works, how the basics of a computer works, basic security, how the Internet works, TCP/IP or HTTP and a web browser, fixing their own PC is now WAY above their heads. I wouldn't trust half these !#)@@#&)-wits to write "Hello World" in Notepad, let alone do it in the code of their own choice!
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Dave KreskowiakDave Kreskowiak wrote:
I wouldn't trust half these !#)@@#&)-wits to write "Hello World" in Notepad, let alone do it in the code of their own choice!
Herro werld Helro wald Haro wirld Oh #### I give up.... :-O
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
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That is because you are a user of the car. Not what I am talking about.
There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.
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Hmm... you know how many people I know that can program but can't use linux? Isn't that about the same thing?
If it moves, compile it
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Does it drive anyone else bonkers when developers keep complaining about their windows PC blue screening? If you know how to program why can't you figure out how to fix your own computer, or at least start researching?
There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.
I can't think why, but you make me think of cactus... 20+ years ago when I came into the PROFESSION there was a lot of cross over between hardware and software. It made life an elephant pain. Today we don't have to worry what the media is, we use it. Imagine rewriting your code because a new disk has been installed. It sucked. Big chunks. Today, we let the hardware boys deal with their voodoo. Their job is to make sure it works. Our job is to make sure we use it well.
Panic, Chaos, Destruction. My work here is done. Drink. Get drunk. Fall over - P O'H OK, I will win to day or my name isn't Ethel Crudacre! - DD Ethel Crudacre I cannot live by bread alone. Bacon and ketchup are needed as well. - Trollslayer Have a bit more patience with newbies. Of course some of them act dumb - they're often *students*, for heaven's sake - Terry Pratchett
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No, just general experience and observations over the last 25 years...
A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]
Dave Kreskowiak
