[Links] Programmer career
In “In case you missed it”, I share links to interesting things I recently found on the Internet.
This time, it’s about being a good developer and manage your career.
1. Working as a Software Developer
This is one of my favorite article on programming career advice. It really influenced me.
http://henrikwarne.com/2012/12/12/working-as-a-software-developer/
Here is the most important thing in here:
Write for people first, computer second.
The computer doesnÔÇÖt care how the code is written, so make it as easy as possible to understand for the next person that has to read it.
ItÔÇÖs better to be clear than to be clever.
This few sentences literally changed my way of writing code.
2. Managing your Career in IT
Here are a few career advices, especially on selecting the right skill set.
http://programmers.blogoverflow.com/2012/09/managing-your-career-in-it/
Quotes:
Choose Skills that compliment your current skill set
Choose Skills that are transferable and Soft
3. Don’t Call Yourself A Programmer, And Other Career Advice
Here is a quite pessimistic view of our job. I can’t say I agree on everything, but it’s definitely worth reading.
http://www.kalzumeus.com/2011/10/28/dont-call-yourself-a-programmer/
The text is really long so it’s impossible to sum it up in a few quotes. However, here is a taste:
This post aspires to be README.txt for your career as a young engineer.
Producing beautiful software is not a goal. Solving complex technical problems is not a goal. Writing bug-free code is not a goal. Using sexy programming languages is not a goal. Add revenue. Reduce costs. Those are your only goals.
You are not defined by your chosen software stack.
In the real world, picking up a new language takes a few weeks of effort and after 6 to 12 months nobody will ever notice you havenÔÇÖt been doing that one for your entire career.
Your most important professional skill is communication
Modesty is not a career-enhancing character trait
At the end of the day, your life happiness will not be dominated by your career.
4. How to be a Programmer: A Short, Comprehensive, and Personal Summary
Here is a very complete career guide. It ranges from technical advises to team management.
http://samizdat.mines.edu/howto/HowToBeAProgrammer.html
There are a lot of topics, here a some of them:
How to Work with Poor Code
How to Deal with Difficult People
How to Stay Motivated
How to Tradeoff Quality Against Development Time
How to Tell the Hard From the Impossible
How to Tell People Things They Don’t Want to Hear
5. Ten ways to improve your programming skills
Quick, pragmatic guide:
http://www.antoarts.com/10-ways-to-improve-your-programming-skills/
Here are the best advises:
Learn a new programming language
Read a good, challenging programming book
Solve programming puzzles
Hang out at programming sites and read blogs
Learn low-level programming