Re: So it's homework

Having read the other responses (with which I agree), I feel the need to add a different reason, which is partly professional, and partly pure ego.

I wrote software professionally. I'm good at it. I've got a natural ability to understand problems and write code. I also enjoy it. I get paid reasonably, but not outstandingly.

And I'm always amazed and horrified to find out how little other professional programmers know (present company exluded). Frequently these are people getting paid more than me for their knowledge. You name it, there'll be somebody out there who just makes you throw your hands up and go "what? we gave them a job?" The don't use strict; because when the do, the program doesn't run. And they don't want to take the time to learn (see also Management that just doesn't understand). They won't stop using symbolic references because "it works for them", and get upset when you try to explain why it's wrong. They write their own CGI parser, and attack XML with regular expressions. They won't read technical documentation ("the man pages are too hard."), instead relying on folklore.

If you try to point out better ways of doing things, they point out their wonderful education, and they fact that they got such and such a degree from somewhere.

But what do they get from such a degree? From studying such a course? Not the ability to think, reason or understand. They simply create more work for the rest of us, either clearing up the mess they leave behind, convincing management that there is a better way, or simply recovering from a tarnished reputation.

Simply handing an anonymous monk the answers on a plate only undermines our worth. If they make an effort (either abandoning their anonymity, or demonstrating some willingness to extert themselves), then they should earn a commensurate reward. But such blatant attempts to avoid any involvement in their own learning processes should simply be turned away at the door.

With my apologies for the rant: I'm working with somebody very like this at the moment...

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Re(2): So it's homework - so what? by FoxtrotUniform (Prior) on Oct 27, 2001 at 00:56 UTC
I strongly concur. I suspect that most Monks who object to homework posts (and I'm one of them, though I don't usually want to spend a vote on them) object because they work with, or have worked with in the past, a "programmer" who insists on having their hand held full-time. Thus, we react strongly when we see the same thing happening elsewhere. (Also, on a personal level I'm irritated that "some Anonymonk" considers my time to be so much more expendible than theirs.) As for the four engineers story: let's assume that the course in question was thermodynamics. Which engineer would you rather have designing jet turbine blades? Update:"What's a heat transfer equation?" "How do I do this integral?" "What does this graph mean?" "Why's titanium better than nickel for that part?" `-- :wq`	[reply]
Re: Re: So it's homework - so what? by chaoticset (Chaplain) on Oct 28, 2001 at 20:51 UTC
I have been told this by other members of the Perl community and members of other communities: "How technically able you are is, unfortunately, only one of the determining factors in your salary." In an ideal world, that would not be the case. This is not an ideal world. I have two half-brothers. One of them is a 'people-handler', the type of person I easily loathe. Spends a lot of time trying to look good. Exercises constantly. Does anything vaguely trendy. He manages the entire U.S.-based marketing of a fairly popular allergy drug. My other half-brother is a quiet, thoughtful type. He researches things; he bought himself a fairly powerful Compaq, asking for my help in finding the right one for him. He can field strip a gun; he can make minor plumbing repairs; he can cook. He works at a local grocery store, as the front manager. The discrepancy in their salaries should be evident. Is one of them smarter than the other? Yes, absolutely. The second one is leagues more intelligent. Put either of them in a room with a set of clock parts, the second one will be the one to build a clock. Put either of them inside a house with bad wiring, the second will be the one who could fix it. So I have come to the conclusion that even if I do end up getting paid to do what I love - programming Perl, and programming in general - it won't be as much as the idiot whores who handle people well, have zero integrity, and smooth-talk their way into things. I won't make a lot of money writing good code. For that, I'll have to retain copyrights. ;)	[reply]


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Re: So it's homework - so what?