4 ms·

> There are offices with 18 or 20 men and 0 women or 1 woman. That doesn't happen statistically - certainly not with the incentives of exceedingly high salaries

> There are offices with 18 or 20 men and 0 women or 1 woman. That doesn't happen statistically - certainly not with the incentives of exceedingly high salaries [...] It's entirely possible that I am extrapolating from my own naivety, but do young men really get into software development for the money? I don't think any of my friends were thinking about our future salaries when we started programming after school. It's just this hobby that people will inexplicably pay us money for. I know this sounds like a cliché, but I've never seen data to the contrary.

rarec 10y ago
There are quite a few who do it for just the money. And there's nothing wrong with that, either.
lazyasciiart 10y ago
Yes, it is an uncontroversial fact that the number of computer science degrees achieved correlates to the social perception of CS as a path to wealth, and the implication is that some people enrol in CS because they think there is money in it - http://www.geekwire.com/2014/analysis-examining-computer-science-education-explosion/ http://www.geekwire.com/2014/analysis-examining-computer-sci...
angry-hacker 10y ago
The majority of people I know do it for the passion. Nice salary is a bonus, but I'm 100% the men I know would do the same work even for pennies.
- AnimalMuppet 10y ago
  I used to think, every so often, "Don't they realize that I'd do this even if they didn't pay me?" But then I got married, had children, the kids grew up and needed braces and cars and college. I really need work that pays well right now, whether or not I like the work.
  - angry-hacker 10y ago
    I know very well how tough it is... but for a lot of guys, things like that are not a priority. For different reasons... I personally believe this is what makes the difference between women and men. Women tend to appreciate real things like family, kids, healthy lifestyle more than the geeks who are fine with staring a screen all day long.
    - emodendroket 10y ago
      It sounds more like the difference between 20-year-olds and older people with responsibilities other than themselves and work.
      - angry-hacker 10y ago
        Not really, men tend to care more about work than family. That's just the way it is.
emodendroket 10y ago
I think a fair number of people major in computer science and get programming jobs because it's a stable job, yes.

rarec 10y ago

There are quite a few who do it for just the money. And there's nothing wrong with that, either.

lazyasciiart 10y ago

Yes, it is an uncontroversial fact that the number of computer science degrees achieved correlates to the social perception of CS as a path to wealth, and the implication is that some people enrol in CS because they think there is money in it - http://www.geekwire.com/2014/analysis-examining-computer-science-education-explosion/ http://www.geekwire.com/2014/analysis-examining-computer-sci...

angry-hacker 10y ago

The majority of people I know do it for the passion. Nice salary is a bonus, but I'm 100% the men I know would do the same work even for pennies.

AnimalMuppet 10y ago
I used to think, every so often, "Don't they realize that I'd do this even if they didn't pay me?" But then I got married, had children, the kids grew up and needed braces and cars and college. I really need work that pays well right now, whether or not I like the work.
- angry-hacker 10y ago
  I know very well how tough it is... but for a lot of guys, things like that are not a priority. For different reasons... I personally believe this is what makes the difference between women and men. Women tend to appreciate real things like family, kids, healthy lifestyle more than the geeks who are fine with staring a screen all day long.
  - emodendroket 10y ago
    It sounds more like the difference between 20-year-olds and older people with responsibilities other than themselves and work.
    - angry-hacker 10y ago
      Not really, men tend to care more about work than family. That's just the way it is.

emodendroket 10y ago

I think a fair number of people major in computer science and get programming jobs because it's a stable job, yes.