How Many Years Coding
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
Been coding since 1977....started on punch cards, went up to punch tape. First computer was a PDP11 compatible....had to enter bootstrap code in using toggle switches.....therefore learnt machine code first, then went to basic and then C....miss machine code. As they say old programmers never die, they just de-compile !
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
I have about 10 years experience and already am sick of it. It's not the learning (on the contrary) or the deadlines, but the stupidity of managers who refuse to listen to anything you say. You tell them what is wrong, you tell them why and how, but still they cling on to some superior feeling they know best (and at best try to convince you with a vague argument which (s)he just invented). There are plenty of good managers, but often they don't last long.
V.
(MQOTD rules and previous solutions) -
I have about 10 years experience and already am sick of it. It's not the learning (on the contrary) or the deadlines, but the stupidity of managers who refuse to listen to anything you say. You tell them what is wrong, you tell them why and how, but still they cling on to some superior feeling they know best (and at best try to convince you with a vague argument which (s)he just invented). There are plenty of good managers, but often they don't last long.
V.
(MQOTD rules and previous solutions)I had 40 years of it starting in 1966, and that was the main problem throughout my career. And I'm sorry to say the worst offenders were Americans who were managing the UK team that I was part of. Fortunatley I knew plenty of Americans who felt the same way.
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
Thanks to all who replied, some interesting stuff & i've read them all :). One thing about the 80+ hours is that i've had my own software business since 1991, and to compete with bigger companies have needed to react faster and produce better stuff, so its myself who decides this to launch products quickly, meet deadlines or keep promises (even when the customer has moved the goalpost). my strategy to do what's necessary has provided me an excellent living and kept my families head above water where many business's have failed, and for the most part have loved what I do, but Im not sure if I want to keep doing the same when i'm 60 so looking for a challenge as there's only so much golf I can play lol. Thanks again Bob
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:thumbsup: I appreciate the long answer ! Next time, feel free to send me back and learn reading all the posts if I ask the same others already did :-O Today, I learned despair.com, and I think this might cost me some time today :rolleyes: As for offense, no offense taken ! I am now so used to stereotypes about French that I feel the need to carry a white flag along with my baguette in my backpack, but the "French do not work hard" was kind of new. All clear now, thanks !
~RaGE();
I think words like 'destiny' are a way of trying to find order where none exists. - Christian Graus Entropy isn't what it used to.
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The joke was a reference to this demotivator from Despair.com: http://www.despair.com/effort.html[^], which I should have included with the original post. It seems that I have struck a nerve based on a few of the questions regarding this post. I didn't intend any malice with the comment, and I am sorry if I offended anyone, except disaffected college students. This may also explain why this poster is on the list of Retired Demotivators[^]: along with these others that reference countries: Discovery[^] Mediocrity[^] Freedom[^] Achievement[^] And Americans, or at least our government, is also represented in this list: Bailouts[^] Congress[^] Government[^] Finally, I do fear that this one does ring with quite a bit of truth in America: Knowledge[^]
despair.com is one of the really great places on the net - highly recommended. Every year I buy their calendars with the new selection of demotivators. Unfortunately for the rest of you, a couple of my favorites are on the retired list. Among them, "Loneliness. If you find yourself struggli9ng with loneliness, your're not alone. And yet your are alone. So very alone" - with this picture of the very lonely tree on a snowy hill. Loneliness[^] Or, "Individuality, Always remember that your are unique. Just like everbody else" - where the 'photo' makes a subtle twist: It shows a handful of snow crystals, but only those who are observant will notice that all the snow crystals have five arms! Individuality[^] The despair.com photos are excellent. The wisdom is great, and usually it carries far more truth than the more common "motivators" do. The parody is far better than the original.
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
Wow ... this read like I could have written it! I, too, have been 'round the block a few times in this field (38). I started just a couple years before you did. ('76). It's been a cool ride, no? I share your sentiment about moving into management. I feel that it's for the birds, honestly. You've heard the saying: "Those who can't do, manage!" I'm an avid Dilbert fan; the "pointy-haired boss" being the spitting image of a boss I had some years back. Like you, I still enjoy coding (and also like you a LOT of my work is troubleshooting). As for actual development, I'm spending considerably less time doing that now. My main function with my existing company is the support and troubleshooting of our code. We were bought out about 5 years ago and the parent company needs me to keep it running while they transition our client base to their product. As it is a pretty large system with many clients I'll probably be doing that for quite some time yet. I'm in no hurry to get into another big development project to be honest. On my own time I write systems for small businesses that could not otherwise afford it. My current project is automation of a co-op farm that we participate in. I do that in exchange for a share in the farm. I also have several programs I've written for automating things for myself which I maintain and improve as I need new features. I tinker with those things as I have the time & inclination. To me, coding was never really about money (I mean, yeah, I had to make a living but I think you understand). It's nice to just write when I feel like it and experiment without having to worry about whether someone else will like it or not. I'm finding that more and more of my time is being devoted to bike rides, building a chicken coop, stuff like that. I was pretty passionate about software development for a real long time but I'm slowly transitioning away from doing that all the time. Someday maybe (if my health holds up) I'll go drive a bus or do something that doesn't involve burning my brain out. ;)
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The first lines of code I wrote were in Basic on a Texas Instruments TI99-4A; we then were in 1983, and I was 10. But I only code seriously since 10 years now; I've merely known only .NET languages (a litlle bit of VB6, but I quit it quickly). Edit: I forgot to mention that I studied Prolog during the last year before graduation. I remember we had a project, a nice program that allowed us to check every fact about greek deities genealogy. From this language, I forgot almost everything, though.
There are two kinds of people in the world: those who separate humankind in two distinct categories, and those who don't. "I have two hobbies: breasts." DSK
Ah, the TI99-4A. Not a bad little machine as I recall. A bit different to all the others. Did you have the speech synthesizer that plugged into the side? That was cool.
Regards, Rob Philpott.
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Ah, the TI99-4A. Not a bad little machine as I recall. A bit different to all the others. Did you have the speech synthesizer that plugged into the side? That was cool.
Regards, Rob Philpott.
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
I recently started taking violin lessons again so that if (when?) I get tired of coding, I can hopefully join an orchestra :-D But while the challenges remain, along with the thrill of solving them, I don't think I'll get tired of coding quickly :) Open plan offices, red tape and poor project planning/management, on the other hand... X|
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
Started coding in grade 3 (81-82) on a TI-99 4/A, though at the time that was mostly from the coding magazines. That was what started it all though. Years later moved onto the C64, then PC. Still love it, but not every day. I still have had weeks of 80+ hours, but not with the same fervor that I did when I was younger! What I tend to enjoy more is the system analysis and design and then passing that on to others to bring the ideas to life.
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
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That one was short.
"If you don't fail at least 90 percent of the time, you're not aiming high enough." Alan Kay.
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Man, with all the responses I feel like a kid around here. I started learning programming in 1999, but started doing it professionally since 2007. Heck I wasn't even born when most of the other guys started. Anyways, I've noticed that whenever I feel my passion for it dying out a bit, if there is someone that I know personally that I can teach stuff to or that I consider as "competition" I try harder and learn more stuff, do more of it in my spare time and my passion lights up even brighter than before. One thing to note is that 80+ hrs a week of ANY SINGLE THING and I'd be sick of it pretty quickly, heck, even videogames which I also love. My suggestion is that you try and cut down your hours to the normal 40 a week or even just like a part time job (maybe 20 - 30 a week), if possible of course. Then you could use the spare time to try and mentor some young mind on this road, try new IT/programming (maybe get an Arduino, Raspberry Pi, Beaglebone?) related stuff or just get a different hobby altogether (Woodworking? Working on cars? Hunting?). Think of what would you do if money was never gonna be an issue, then save money, and go do it.
If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right - Henry Ford Emmanuel Medina Lopez
I started learning in 2003 in college. I was always into computers and taking them apart and rebuilding, but never was coding. I begin professionally in 2007 as well, so for 7 years as a profession now. I normally put in 40 hours at work and then 10 to 20 with at home projects and part time work. It is more like 10 hours with family stuff, but sometimes get up to 20.
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
How I wish that I shared your experience! I spent 28 years working as a contractor (good pay; no benefits) and ended up going on total disability in 2008. But the love of coding remains strong within me and I am always downloading the latest and greatest trial software.
Bruce Baker - brucebrookebaker@yahoo.com
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I've been writing & supporting code for commercial and bespoke (mainly business) systems since 1978 on many different platforms and languages, and 36 years later I still love it, still do it for a living, & am writing my best stuff, but look at all the new languages, frameworks, operating systems etc. and think "here we go again" so am getting increasingly reluctant to want to keep re-learning it all once more, and at 52 I still often put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines but can feel a bit of the passion dying year on year, so how long have others kept on? and if you moved away to a different sphere or know of others that did, what did they do? I earn good money which is hard to give up but it isn't the be all and end all, i'm just looking for something different where I can put my experience to good use and have a tad more fun over and above being some sort of 'manager'. Thanks.
I took BASIC and COBOL on a PDP-11 when I went to community college back in the mid 70s. I bought an Apple 2 when they first came out while working on a 4 year degree. Between the Apple 2 and Pascal I was hooked. I was studying electrical engineering at the time and learned a little about assembly language by punching hex codes into an 8080 development board. As far as programming goes, I never looked back. Graduated in 1978 then went on for an MSCS and have been doing embedded programming since 1980. I also owned a TRS80 Model 100 which was one of the first (the first?) portable computers. It had built in BASIC and 32K or so of persistent storage, even had a text editor and some simple business apps built in. Unfortunately what used to be tremendous fun for me is now just a way to earn a living. I'm going to retire soon and hopefully start doing it again for enjoyment instead of for pay.
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I generally don't bother too much on here today gone tomorrow forum posts but I've had articles published in the past (mainly about poker) and been paid for them which was great, but writing is an underpaid occupation and hard to make money at bearing in mind the time it takes, but I did dabble a bit for fun and uploaded some stuff to my blog site that I don't bother much with now, if you have nothing better to do and want to kill a short while have a look at www.winbase.info. GL
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I took BASIC and COBOL on a PDP-11 when I went to community college back in the mid 70s. I bought an Apple 2 when they first came out while working on a 4 year degree. Between the Apple 2 and Pascal I was hooked. I was studying electrical engineering at the time and learned a little about assembly language by punching hex codes into an 8080 development board. As far as programming goes, I never looked back. Graduated in 1978 then went on for an MSCS and have been doing embedded programming since 1980. I also owned a TRS80 Model 100 which was one of the first (the first?) portable computers. It had built in BASIC and 32K or so of persistent storage, even had a text editor and some simple business apps built in. Unfortunately what used to be tremendous fun for me is now just a way to earn a living. I'm going to retire soon and hopefully start doing it again for enjoyment instead of for pay.
ahhh the TRS-80. my first PC was a video genie which was a trs-80 copy, cassette tape for storage, and 8k I think. if you wanted to expand to 32k you had to buy an external unit the size of a shoebox that had its own power supply lol. those early days of little memory have always stayed with me and im sure have helped me to write concise and reusable code which i try to do to this day - happy days !! GL