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Ithaqua posted:Move. Seriously. It's going to suck. Amtrak might be your best bet. I'm tucked away in the northwest corner (2 hours from Philly), so my commuting experience is nothing like yours will be. I'm stuck here for the time being (wife is in nursing school) but yeah that's possibly in the cards.
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Sep 8, 2015 20:20
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I used to drive like 20 miles to work, and right now I find the 1 mile / 10 minute commute terrible for some reason. I think commuting between anywhere is just terrible. I swear the next place I live will be right across the street and I'll just eat noodles.
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Sep 8, 2015 21:10
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Commuting by car for more than say 10 minutes is kind of terrible, commuting by decent public transit us alright up to say 45 minutes. I think the real difference is how much you have to care during the commute. When you're driving you have to be aware of everything around you and get frustrated by other drivers and traffic. Take a commuter train in to the city on the other hand and it won't be so bad since you can just relax and read something or take a nap. I just walk most of the way to work now, takes a bit longer but it feels nicer than the other routes and it's healthier. Not sure how people do long driving commutes, especially here, every day. I think they're just a bit crazy.
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Sep 8, 2015 21:26
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dougdrums posted:I used to drive like 20 miles to work, and right now I find the 1 mile / 10 minute commute terrible for some reason. I think commuting between anywhere is just terrible. I swear the next place I live will be right across the street and I'll just eat noodles.
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Sep 8, 2015 21:27
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Cicero posted:You could try biking: http://bikeportland.org/2013/01/30/bike-commuters-are-happiest-and-other-psu-research-tidbits-82448 I have the best of both worlds with a scooter  (and I nearly get killed enough as it is).(And I'm lazy.) I might agree with that article though. I hate driving through town with my car so much, it'll sometimes look like I'm driving through Bangladesh with the amount of poo poo I strap to it. dougdrums fucked around with this message at 21:29 on Sep 8, 2015 |
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Sep 8, 2015 21:27
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Well, my guess is that walking and biking are at the top because of the exercise involved.
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Sep 8, 2015 21:28
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dougdrums posted:I have the best of both worlds with a scooter The biggest downside of a scooter is it makes you look like a megadweeb+toolio iglesias in one package
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Sep 8, 2015 21:28
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Blotto Skorzany posted:The biggest downside of a scooter is it makes you look like a megadweeb+toolio iglesias in one package I'm just going to school again now, so there's a lot of other dweebs going around to make me feel better. Also I could care less about looking silly.  Cicero posted:Well, my guess is that walking and biking are at the top because of the exercise involved. That would make sense. If the weather is nice I usually do walk. I just usually have other stuff to do across town after I'm done with school that precludes me from walking every time. And most of my gripes are with parking, which isn't much better with a bicycle here. dougdrums fucked around with this message at 21:39 on Sep 8, 2015 |
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Sep 8, 2015 21:32
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Blotto Skorzany posted:The biggest downside of a scooter is it makes you look like a megadweeb+toolio iglesias in one package Have you seen the new Mackelmore video 
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Sep 8, 2015 21:41
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One downside of a short commute that I've experienced is that it doesn't give enough time to really separate work and home. When I was younger and more emotional I'd get stewed up about something at work, drive 10 minutes home, and still be steamed. A longer commute breaks the train of thought more effectively, so 30~45 minutes is the sweet spot for me. I can't imagine being right across the street. Every stupid "Oh well I could've tried X" idea being walking distance from implementation would be too much temptation.
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Sep 8, 2015 21:50
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I found that if I dwell on work during my previous commute I will turn into the hulk and car smash etc. and just be that much more upset about my work problem when I got home. By its nature, my previous job interfered with my personal life so much I've definitely taken a lesson from it. On that note, pagers and being on call were mentioned. How often and where does a jr/mid level developer have to be on call? What sort of arrangement might require such a thing as a developer besides CLIENT ANGRY FIX NOW? vvvv I may have had some frank discussion with both of you over the very same topic in GBS 
dougdrums fucked around with this message at 22:05 on Sep 8, 2015 |
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Sep 8, 2015 21:57
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Cicero posted:You could try biking: http://bikeportland.org/2013/01/30/bike-commuters-are-happiest-and-other-psu-research-tidbits-82448 We have a very active bicycle commuting thread  http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3627612 Ok I'll drop the subject now
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Sep 8, 2015 21:59
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JawnV6 posted:One downside of a short commute that I've experienced is that it doesn't give enough time to really separate work and home. When I was younger and more emotional I'd get stewed up about something at work, drive 10 minutes home, and still be steamed. A longer commute breaks the train of thought more effectively, so 30~45 minutes is the sweet spot for me. Wouldn't you also have that problem with remote access? I mean, I get the same thing but I usually just pull out my phone and fire off a really short email to my work address, even if I'm home and can remote into work within five minutes.
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Sep 8, 2015 21:59
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Munkeymon posted:Wouldn't you also have that problem with remote access? I mean, I get the same thing but I usually just pull out my phone and fire off a really short email to my work address, even if I'm home and can remote into work within five minutes. Then again, a group at a former employer was quite proud of their "No Laptop Thursdays" meaning you could go home Thursday night without the expectation of logging back in from home. So my "reasonable" w/l balance is most likely wrong.
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Sep 8, 2015 22:40
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JawnV6 posted:I work in embedded so remote access alone isn't enough to enable an implementation. I generally need physical objects that are conveniently located away from my home. I currently use a physical notebook for those little reminder notes.  no, I think theirs is
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Sep 8, 2015 22:45
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dougdrums posted:I found that if I dwell on work during my previous commute I will turn into the hulk and car smash etc. and just be that much more upset about my work problem when I got home. By its nature, my previous job interfered with my personal life so much I've definitely taken a lesson from it. Some places do on call, some don't. I was on call at my first job because my department was hands on with clients on software we hosted and developed for them -- so they would call any time off work hours and complain about some issue occurring, or that some of the data they sent wasn't correct and now the system isn't working. Basically we were used to figure out why something stopped working suddenly, usually because the client was sending data to the hosted solution and they weren't doing it right but only we could tell why and how it broke. I think they're moving to have the oncall be handled by a different support team now. You were on call for a week every month or so (depending on how many people were still in the pool, due to people being fired or leaving quite often). I also know Amazon does it in some departments, so it's just a thing that sometimes happens.
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Sep 8, 2015 23:29
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How would you negotiate that? Is it something that even is negotiable? I get the impression that you did have a line of support ahead of you, and that you got called up if it became code related? I'm just imagining the most unreasonable scenario (Boss: "Here's our 'support' number, feel free to call anytime ..."), and I've known on call systems that get horribly abused ... so I'm hoping reality is a lot less neurotic.
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Sep 8, 2015 23:42
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dougdrums posted:How would you negotiate that? Is it something that even is negotiable? I get the impression that you did have a line of support ahead of you, and that you got called up if it became code related? The clients who could call it up had it in their contracts and had to pay extra, also we charged them more if the call wasn't a critical one or something like that? We didn't deal with the customers of the clients, only the actual clients themselves (large scale utilities companies and the like) so it wasn't that bad, they're all in the same timezone so it's not like they're just breaking things through the night and calling you, stuff worked roughly right roughly most of the time -- still not uncommon to get a call every day though. No idea about negotiating, this was a lovely position and they didn't have that much trouble finding people so I don't think it was something people negotiated often, also I'm pretty sure it was a big job requirement.
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Sep 8, 2015 23:55
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I work at a startup with a relatively small amount of engineers (~60-70), and we all get pager duty on rotation. I'm actually on it right now. There are people who are way better at responding to it than I am, and it's often something that's totally out of my realm of experience (e.g. something's up with our db clusters), but at the very least I try to stay aware of our production issues. vv
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Sep 9, 2015 12:55
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I'm currently taking a postgraduate college course in IT that allows me to specialize in either Database Development or Enterprise Software Development. Having done my undergrad in an unrelated field, I am at a bit of a loss to decide where to focus my efforts. Both streams teach Java but the Database includes extra courses on Oracle SQL/Data Warehousing/Business Intelligence while the Enterprise Software delves into mobile programming, .Net and additional Java courses. Everything I've read on here seems to be favoring software development as a career for high pay, many job opportunities, and freedom in the workplace. However, industry professionals and professors here in Canada seem to say that database administration is higher paying and possibly a more desirable career. Perhaps this is because I'm in Canada and there's less tech startups offering programming jobs here? Also I get the impression that DBA or database analyst is a more realistic career path for someone lacking a CS undergrad. Since I'm joining a little late to the game and am not great at math perhaps database roles are more suited to me. I don't mind doing boring grunt work if that's what being a DBA entails. I'm mainly looking for what has the best job opportunities, job security, pay and work atmosphere. One thing I've heard about being a DBA is that you are essentially on call 24/7 which sounds bothersome. The two programs seem to have a decent amount of overlap so I'd hope that after completing it I might qualify for entry level jobs in either career path, but I need to determine my focus by next semester. One final consideration is that as a long-term goal I'm interested/intrigued by the field of IT security. I'm not sure which stream would better facilitate that career path. The program is called Information Technology Solutions at Humber College (https://www.humber.ca/program/information-technology-solutions) if anyone cares enough to take a look and offer me some advice. Thanks and sorry if this was a bit incoherent, I'm still new to the field and not sure I understand all the terminology just yet. e: Double posting this in SH/S as I'm not sure where this belongs
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Sep 9, 2015 20:55
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Ornithology posted:I'm currently taking a postgraduate college course in IT that allows me to specialize in either Database Development or Enterprise Software Development. Having done my undergrad in an unrelated field, I am at a bit of a loss to decide where to focus my efforts. Both streams teach Java but the Database includes extra courses on Oracle SQL/Data Warehousing/Business Intelligence while the Enterprise Software delves into mobile programming, .Net and additional Java courses. Anecdotal, but every DBA I've ever known has just seemed to be thoroughly unhappy about life. I'm not sure if depressed people are attracted to database administration, or if database administration makes people depressed, but its definitely a trend I've noticed. To be more useful, if you aren't sure what you want to do, go for the development choice since its not locking you into a certain field immediately. If you decide you want to be a DBA later, it wouldn't be difficult to choose that path. What interests you about IT security? Its a big field with a ton of different sub divisions.
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Sep 9, 2015 21:33
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Had a phone screen with a recruiter today, and he described the job as "not strictly a programming job," which surprised me a bit after reading the posting I found on indeed, although the one he emailed me after our conversation was over was clearer on that account. Can I get any Goon feedback on whether this job looks worthwhile or whether it just looks like dead-end QA/bitchwork?quote:As our Client Facing Software Engineer, working with some of the most advanced SOC design teams in the world, you will work with our customers to ensure that they receive the support and advice they need to make best use of our IP cores and technologies. This is a customer-facing role that will be leading the support, training and resolution of issues related to product deliverable. You will be working with development closely and while this role requires a technical background and you will need to understand code, you will not be committing code in this role. Rather you will also be working with customers closely and will be at the heart of a great customer experience. Much of our technology stack can be trained. We are looking for someone who has a good foundation of technical as well as soft skills and the ability to pick things up quickly. I think I'm qualified for the job and I'm not in a position where I can turn my nose up too hard, but I'm also not in a position where I'm desperate enough to hop into a job if I suspect that it'll just spit me out in a year, no more employable than it found me. Spiritus Nox fucked around with this message at 22:17 on Sep 9, 2015 |
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Sep 9, 2015 22:15
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pr0zac posted:Anecdotal, but every DBA I've ever known has just seemed to be thoroughly unhappy about life. I'm not sure if depressed people are attracted to database administration, or if database administration makes people depressed, but its definitely a trend I've noticed.
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Sep 9, 2015 22:15
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Spiritus Nox posted:Had a phone screen with a recruiter today, and he described the job as "not strictly a programming job," which surprised me a bit after reading the posting I found on indeed, although the one he emailed me after our conversation was over was clearer on that account. Can I get any Goon feedback on whether this job looks worthwhile or whether it just looks like dead-end QA/bitchwork? Looks more like tech support for other developers.
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Sep 9, 2015 22:36
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Skandranon posted:Looks more like tech support for other developers. So, not worth it?
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Sep 9, 2015 22:44
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Spiritus Nox posted:So, not worth it? *shrug* do you enjoy writing code, or simply talking about writing code? It explicitly mentions you won't be committing code, and says a lot of "customer experience"
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Sep 9, 2015 22:50
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Skandranon posted:*shrug* do you enjoy writing code, or simply talking about writing code? It explicitly mentions you won't be committing code, and says a lot of "customer experience" At this point I don't really care all that much, I'm trying to get a read about how stable this sort of job is likely to be and what my financial prospects would likely be if I pursued it.
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Sep 9, 2015 22:56
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quote:Ability to travel up to 15-20% domestically and internationally Do you like to travel? If you read between the lines, this is potentially the kind of job where you'll get a call at midnight because a customer in Germany is having a problem and they need you on site as soon as possible, so you're catching a flight to Munich at 5 am. It also means that if you're scheduled to be somewhere on a Monday, say goodbye to most or all of your Sunday, and possibly your Saturday as well depending on where you're going. And then cut out a big chunk of the day following the return flight, since you'll be leaving either after business hours (7-8 pm) or the next morning. Also, if you live alone this means either no pets or someone willing to pet-sit. New Yorp New Yorp fucked around with this message at 23:45 on Sep 9, 2015 |
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Sep 9, 2015 23:30
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Yeah, don't take that job. I guarantee you it will suck. "Ability to travel" is a big red flag in any job posting.
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Sep 9, 2015 23:43
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I was getting a bad impression, but I wanted to get a second opinion. Thanks, folks.
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Sep 9, 2015 23:52
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I took a job kind of like that that I turned around to get a developer offer elsewhere. It didn't have any travel though. It might be a good last option, I wasn't getting any bites really so I didn't have many other options, but it's probably not the end of the world to take.
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Sep 10, 2015 00:05
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Pollyanna posted:Yeah, don't take that job. I guarantee you it will suck. "Ability to travel" is a big red flag in any job posting. Have you had jobs that involved ability to travel? What if it pays more than otherwise-equivalent alternatives?
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Sep 10, 2015 00:08
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Is there any kind of benchmark that I can refer to for when a self-taught programmer's good-to-go on entry level work? For context, all I've really done so far is Python and Powershell scripting. If I did a rudimentary android app, would that be a, "Put it on github, send out resumes," stage of progression?
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Sep 10, 2015 00:15
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Accretionist posted:Is there any kind of benchmark that I can refer to for when a self-taught programmer's good-to-go on entry level work? What kind of app are you thinking of and how rudimentary are we talking?
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Sep 10, 2015 00:21
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Series DD Funding posted:What kind of app are you thinking of and how rudimentary are we talking? Just a minimalist math-trainer/game. It'd track performance as you churn through problems and.move you up something akin to Khan Academy's exercises tree. There'd also be support for multiple users and custom modes. It's basically something I wished existed but.doesn't and expect would be fun to make.
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Sep 10, 2015 03:40
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Pollyanna posted:Yeah, don't take that job. I guarantee you it will suck. "Ability to travel" is a big red flag in any job posting. Not necessarily. If it's an actual consulting position it could be a pretty decent gig. They typically pay more though because not only are you constantly traveling but you have to eat any poo poo a client strains onto your plate with a big grin on your face. It's a great job though if you're the type of person who meshes with it. It'll be kryptonite if not, though.
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Sep 10, 2015 03:52
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I'm currently in my second year of CS degree, and am starting to look for part time work in the field. What would generally be the best way to go about this? I have gently caress-all of a portfolio, since I only started programming a little over a year ago. If I wanted to start building my github or whatever, what would be the most important thing to look out for? Also, how big of a project is worth putting up there. I'm doing a very (and I mean very) simple Nurikabe program with a GUI for a course, would that be worth it? Also, should I try and familiarize myself with a lot of the primary languages out there and bring that up when applying, or try to become as proficient as possible in one?
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Sep 10, 2015 09:18
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Cicero posted:IF YOU WAIT UNTIL YOU GRADUATE TO LOOK FOR JOBS YOU'RE AN IDIOT! DO NOT DO THIS.  But it gets worse. I recently graduated with a master's degree in Computer Vision & Computer Graphics from a mid-tier German university. I live in Germany, but I want to relocate to the Austin, TX area for personal reasons and find a job in a computer vision-related field there. I've lived in Germany all my life, but I don't need a Green Card to move to the US because I've got dual US-German citizenship, so that's not a problem. How hosed/blessed will I be when I'm applying for jobs in the US with a degree from a German university?
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Sep 10, 2015 14:16
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Siliziumleben posted:I'm an idiot who did this. You have dual US-German citizenship? Can you play soccer?
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Sep 10, 2015 14:47
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Daric posted:You have dual US-German citizenship? Can you play soccer?
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Sep 10, 2015 15:12
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