Programmer Interrupted
-
This is the exact reason why I have not until recently been on CodeProject for several years because it's the one thing that does distract me. It's not getting up every 20 minutes, :java: or the 'inevitable' in every other break it's having to actively think about something else or in another way from writing the code I'm writing. I'm lucky at home because the loudest thing around here now the builders have finished across the way is the very occasional rude goose. Otherwise total silence (exempting fan noise and I do have a lot of fans :-D ) Productivity is mainly percieved relative to expectations and mostly people have no idea how much they could achieve given 8 hours of total focus, no distractions, no noise, no interruptions. On the other hand that means no human interaction, no partner, no children, no co-workers, no Code Project and will very quickly reduce most people to a grunting cave person with little or no inspiration to achieve anything beyond the next meal. Now, how to strike the right balance?
"The secret of happiness is freedom, and the secret of freedom, courage." Thucydides (B.C. 460-400)
Matthew Faithfull wrote:
Otherwise total silence (exempting fan noise and I do have a lot of fans :-D )
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
-
Matthew Faithfull wrote:
Otherwise total silence (exempting fan noise and I do have a lot of fans :-D )
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
-
I can feel the breeze from here... :laugh:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
God yes, interruptions are a killer, and the more inane they are the more likely the interruptee is the going to be the one getting killed! We use Lync and I just turn it off now after being continually interrupted by business users asking if someone else is here as they've had to turn their Lync off to be able to get on with their job. It wouldn't be so bad but its usually >1 users asking the same question, the answer to which should be able to be found in their requirements documentation... or it would if they kept it up to date when they changed their minds :mad:
Rhys "If you ever start taking things too seriously, just remember that we are talking monkeys on an organic spaceship flying through the Universe"
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
That used to happen to Leslie Nielsen. http://www.codeproject.com/insider.aspx?msg=4478293#xx4478293xx[^]
-
That used to happen to Leslie Nielsen. http://www.codeproject.com/insider.aspx?msg=4478293#xx4478293xx[^]
Darn, I didn't look there... I just looked through The Lounge... :sigh:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
I have a large set of on-ear Sony headphones that I put on to listen to music when it is noisy or when I need to concentrate - people pick up on me being in "please don't interrupt me" mode when I have these on. I deliberately do not wear small or in-ear headphones so that this is visible, and it works :)
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
I've no need to read the article. Before there was an Internet, I read a similar one done by (IIRC) Harvard Business School which reported that, based on a rather serious study, each casual interruption no matter how brief, costs an average of 20 minutes productivity. That study was limited to workers who have jobs that require concentration - programming is certainly one of them, as is engineering - and not mere repetition, like assembly line workers. Every phone call, every impromptu drop in to the home cubicle by a coworker, each "quick meeting" the boss calls down the hall, costs 20 minutes. Eight of those in a day, and you leave the office farther behind than when you arrived. Might as well stay in bed... And, just like the report I read, this one will be ignored by every boss it is shown to... :sigh:
Will Rogers never met me.
-
I just skimmed the paper but agree wholeheartedly that frequent interruptions are a productivity killer. At my previous gig, devs would set their IM status to "Do Not Disturb" when they were heads down in coding and didn't want to be interrupted. It was considered rude to ignore this status. /ravi
My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com
At my previous location, we had IM, and people ignored the DND setting. Unfortunately the people who ignored them were high enough up the food chain that nothing could be done. We just started turning off the IM client instead. If it was important enough to get up and walk across the campus to ask us in person, then we dealt with it. At my current job, my previous PM told the end users that the devs would not have IM capability and all communication goes through him. God bless him.
-
At my previous location, we had IM, and people ignored the DND setting. Unfortunately the people who ignored them were high enough up the food chain that nothing could be done. We just started turning off the IM client instead. If it was important enough to get up and walk across the campus to ask us in person, then we dealt with it. At my current job, my previous PM told the end users that the devs would not have IM capability and all communication goes through him. God bless him.
RJOberg wrote:
my previous PM told the end users that the devs would not have IM capability and all communication goes through him
:thumbsup: Anything else is just plain daft. /ravi
My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
Colin Mullikin wrote:
What say you, Lounge?
Although one could not "ultimately eliminate interruptions", one can reduce them strongly. That being the problem, then that's what needs to be addressed. I do not own a mobile telephone. I don't have voicemail. No family in the IM, no interruptions over IM. Ask every IM whether it was acute, and, if not, why the elephant they did not use email. Close your mail-client. One is inclined to respond immediatly. Don't. Check it once every two hours, if you go fill up your coffee. Let everyone know that you're "available" for talk during those minutes. Kick everyone out, including deities, that disturb during work. If a worker can be interrupted, that means that work can get interrupted. In extremis, it could endanger the release of the current beta. And the IM-status; green means doing interruptable work, "available" as it says, and the red means simply "busy". Now get back to your office, and lock your door from the inside. Anyone knocking can safely be ignored if you put a paper on the door explaining that you're working and cannot be disturbed, unless there's a (physical) fire. Also write your coffee-machine-talk times on there and your mail-adres. Also keep a log of requests during those times. See if some complaints keep recurring that are not meant to be handled by either you or your department. I've just started at a new company, and have no idea what tactics they would use. 'bout to find out mayhaps.
Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
I can personally vouch for the extreme effect of interruptions on coding... For the last 12 months I have had to take a diuretic which means that I generally have to "get up and go" every 30 minutes or so. My coding output has dropped to about 1/3 of my previous level. Luckily I have another part of my work which is more suited to short attention spans, so I now put off coding until later in the day when the meds have lost much of their effect.
-
I've no need to read the article. Before there was an Internet, I read a similar one done by (IIRC) Harvard Business School which reported that, based on a rather serious study, each casual interruption no matter how brief, costs an average of 20 minutes productivity. That study was limited to workers who have jobs that require concentration - programming is certainly one of them, as is engineering - and not mere repetition, like assembly line workers. Every phone call, every impromptu drop in to the home cubicle by a coworker, each "quick meeting" the boss calls down the hall, costs 20 minutes. Eight of those in a day, and you leave the office farther behind than when you arrived. Might as well stay in bed... And, just like the report I read, this one will be ignored by every boss it is shown to... :sigh:
Will Rogers never met me.
Quote:
And, just like the report I read, this one will be ignored by every boss it is shown to...
Maybe... But why not just do some things mentioned above anyway? They expect YOU to not tell THEM how to do THEIR work so you can (at least IMHO) expect THEM to not tell YOU how to do YOUR work. Creating the right environment for working is damn sure part of your job, not theirs, isn't it? Regs, cmger
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
I've got a simple solution to those who interrupt me too much. I leave their bodies to rot outside my cubicle.
Software Zen:
delete this; -
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
The best way to stop being interrupted is to be self-employed. This is a SERIOUS response, by the way. If your "boss" is giving you shite, then start your own firm. Simples.
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
There's no dispute that interruptions are a productivity killer. Unfortunately, some interruptions cannot be buffered off:
- Those from people you're supposed to supervise;
- Those from the guy who supervises you;
- Those from your spouse.
Attempt to reject any of those intrusions at your peril. In the first case, the interruptions are part of your responsibilities to your subordinates. In the second, you have an implicit requirement to be available to your supervisor. In the third, sleeping on the couch can ruin your back.
While there are ways to make it plain to others that you'd prefer not to be bothered at the moment, none of them are proof against intrusion -- and none of them will spare you the deleterious consequences of even attempting to deny access to the persons enumerated above. Verbum sat sapienti.
(This message is programming you in ways you cannot detect. Be afraid.)
-
A developer at my company found this article[^] and sent it out to the rest of us (and the testers). I agree with most of what this guy says, and the research results he presents seem pretty spot on. What say you, Lounge? EDIT: After reading the posts below, it seems Keith could use this as ammo to his higher-ups. :thumbsup:
The United States invariably does the right thing, after having exhausted every other alternative. -Winston Churchill America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between. -Oscar Wilde Wow, even the French showed a little more spine than that before they got their sh*t pushed in.[^] -Colin Mullikin
Slightly off topic, but there's some interesting info about how the guys at Stack Exchange work here. I figure it ties in as if you can work remotely you can cut down interruptions as you don't get people popping round / are in control of the methods that people can use to communicate with you (e.g. stop checking mail / turn phone off / etc). http://blog.stackoverflow.com/2013/02/why-we-still-believe-in-working-remotely/[^]
-
I have a large set of on-ear Sony headphones that I put on to listen to music when it is noisy or when I need to concentrate - people pick up on me being in "please don't interrupt me" mode when I have these on. I deliberately do not wear small or in-ear headphones so that this is visible, and it works :)
“That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”
― Christopher Hitchens
exactly. I have my big sony headphones. I have been accused of looking like Princess Leia. I don't care. Keeps people away. I also sometimes just put them on and don't play music. I pretend not to hear what people are saying. I pick up some interesting tidbits.
To err is human to really mess up you need a computer
-
There's no dispute that interruptions are a productivity killer. Unfortunately, some interruptions cannot be buffered off:
- Those from people you're supposed to supervise;
- Those from the guy who supervises you;
- Those from your spouse.
Attempt to reject any of those intrusions at your peril. In the first case, the interruptions are part of your responsibilities to your subordinates. In the second, you have an implicit requirement to be available to your supervisor. In the third, sleeping on the couch can ruin your back.
While there are ways to make it plain to others that you'd prefer not to be bothered at the moment, none of them are proof against intrusion -- and none of them will spare you the deleterious consequences of even attempting to deny access to the persons enumerated above. Verbum sat sapienti.
(This message is programming you in ways you cannot detect. Be afraid.)
