If you build it...
Ever since I was a kid I liked to build things. In truth, that unquenchable desire to create create create was what propelled me into software engineering. When you write software you are a god (lower case g), you breathe life into your digital golems after having constructed every last logical detail. Look in the very upper right-hand corner of this window.... See that X? It's not an X because you wanted it to be an X. It's an X because some software guy wanted it to be an X. 8)
I have found, however, that it is hard to maintain the enthusiasm of creation for creation's sake. Worse, with software it is difficult to produce a tangible product that can be appreciated by friends and family. I envision the following fictional conversation with my mom (sorry to pick on you, mom)
Mom B: Hi.
Ed, breathless: You'll never believe what happened!
Mom B: What! Is everything OK?
Ed, breathless: I did it! I was finally able to code my priority search in O(nlgn) and with a little lazy initialization and pointer arithmetic I've made my 50 microsecond deadline! Do you know what this means?!
Mom B: No. You have a lazy what?
Ed, breathless: It means I might have enough spare cycles to run regular housekeeping instead of having to rely on resource timeouts to replenish my pool.
Mom B: You want me to housekeep your pool?
Ed, breathless: Sorry. No time to talk. I've gotta go!
Software is far too ethereal and masked in its own terminology to be accessible. Seeking praise for accomplishments outside the software community is very difficult. Let's try that conversation again, in a different vein:
Mom B: Hi.
Ed, breathless: You'll never believe what happened!
Mom B: What! Is everything OK?
Ed, breathless: I did it! I built a small table.
Mom B: Really? That's terrific!
Ed, breathless: I made it out of wood, and glue, and gave it round edges.
Mom B: What color did you stain it?
Ed, breathless: A light red. I keep it in my office to hold digital camera accessories.
Mom B: I'm so proud of you!
See? Totally different.
-Ed
I have found, however, that it is hard to maintain the enthusiasm of creation for creation's sake. Worse, with software it is difficult to produce a tangible product that can be appreciated by friends and family. I envision the following fictional conversation with my mom (sorry to pick on you, mom)
Mom B: Hi.
Ed, breathless: You'll never believe what happened!
Mom B: What! Is everything OK?
Ed, breathless: I did it! I was finally able to code my priority search in O(nlgn) and with a little lazy initialization and pointer arithmetic I've made my 50 microsecond deadline! Do you know what this means?!
Mom B: No. You have a lazy what?
Ed, breathless: It means I might have enough spare cycles to run regular housekeeping instead of having to rely on resource timeouts to replenish my pool.
Mom B: You want me to housekeep your pool?
Ed, breathless: Sorry. No time to talk. I've gotta go!
Software is far too ethereal and masked in its own terminology to be accessible. Seeking praise for accomplishments outside the software community is very difficult. Let's try that conversation again, in a different vein:
Mom B: Hi.
Ed, breathless: You'll never believe what happened!
Mom B: What! Is everything OK?
Ed, breathless: I did it! I built a small table.
Mom B: Really? That's terrific!
Ed, breathless: I made it out of wood, and glue, and gave it round edges.
Mom B: What color did you stain it?
Ed, breathless: A light red. I keep it in my office to hold digital camera accessories.
Mom B: I'm so proud of you!
See? Totally different.
-Ed
posted by Ed at 11:09 AM
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