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When I went to college the first time around, I really didn't have a desire to be there. If I dropped out, though, everyone would label me a bum since I also di

When I went to college the first time around, I really didn't have a desire to be there. If I dropped out, though, everyone would label me a bum since I also didn't have a desire to do anything else. So I got an easy degree in marketing and ended up working in retail. When I finally decided that I wanted to do something else, I went back to school for computer science. I'd never developed anything before. I didn't even know what programming was. I just knew that if I got the degree and made the right grades, I'd get a job paying 3-4 times what I was making in retail. That's exactly what happened and I do precisely what you describe: build boring internal Java apps for a big company. However, I never really got involved with this stuff because I loved it. I did it for the money and because it was a far easier job than what I had. Now I'm going back to school again for a graduate degree in an entirely different field (except this time debt free). I just don't dive too deeply into stuff. It's not my thing. I'd rather switch up careers a few times in my life and do a bunch of other hobbies like woodworking, music, etc.

TranquilMarmot 11y ago
I think there's room (and need) in the world for both types of developers; ones who just stick to the curriculum and do internal Java apps for big companies and ones who venture off the beaten path. Neither one is better than the other, and each person has their own way of feeling like they're learning and growing and leading a fulfilling life. If it's woodworking or music that make you happy, great! If it's programming at work and then going home and programming even more that make you happy... also great!
- camelNotation 11y ago
  I agree 100%.
andersen1488 11y ago
I think it's awesome you had the courage to admit that here. There's nothing wrong with just working a job from 9-5 to fund your passions. Programmers tend to take offense at it though, for some reason.
- leppr 11y ago
  >Programmers tend to take offense at it though, for some reason Probably the same reason passionate musicians take offense when lazy garbage tunes make it to the charts: Gauging the quality of music is something most people can't do, and they feel robbed because they're not compensated proportionately to the amount of their effort compared to those other unpassionate musicians.
  - camelNotation 11y ago
    The thing is, I feel the same way about my hobbies. Why can't I make as much $/hr as a carpenter or landscaper? Why can't the market accept that this is what I would prefer rather than working as a programmer by day and carpenter in my spare time? Simply put, the market values what it values. There is a definite limit to how much it will care about your passion because other people eventually care about their own money and time too much to give it to you. Unless I am willing to work long hours, I can't make nearly as much as I do now working just over 40 a week. In business for myself I wouldn't have access to the same benefits I get in my programming job. Nothing would compare.

TranquilMarmot 11y ago

I think there's room (and need) in the world for both types of developers; ones who just stick to the curriculum and do internal Java apps for big companies and ones who venture off the beaten path. Neither one is better than the other, and each person has their own way of feeling like they're learning and growing and leading a fulfilling life. If it's woodworking or music that make you happy, great! If it's programming at work and then going home and programming even more that make you happy... also great!

camelNotation 11y ago
I agree 100%.

andersen1488 11y ago

I think it's awesome you had the courage to admit that here. There's nothing wrong with just working a job from 9-5 to fund your passions. Programmers tend to take offense at it though, for some reason.

leppr 11y ago
>Programmers tend to take offense at it though, for some reason Probably the same reason passionate musicians take offense when lazy garbage tunes make it to the charts: Gauging the quality of music is something most people can't do, and they feel robbed because they're not compensated proportionately to the amount of their effort compared to those other unpassionate musicians.
- camelNotation 11y ago
  The thing is, I feel the same way about my hobbies. Why can't I make as much $/hr as a carpenter or landscaper? Why can't the market accept that this is what I would prefer rather than working as a programmer by day and carpenter in my spare time? Simply put, the market values what it values. There is a definite limit to how much it will care about your passion because other people eventually care about their own money and time too much to give it to you. Unless I am willing to work long hours, I can't make nearly as much as I do now working just over 40 a week. In business for myself I wouldn't have access to the same benefits I get in my programming job. Nothing would compare.