8 ms·
The Programmer Dress Code
- russell 16y agoSurely Dennis Ritchie and Ken Thompson are the winners as the masters of the style. I saw them at a Usenix convention 20 years or so after the picture in the posting. Their beard were much fuller and much grayer, beer bellies of remarkable proportions and wearing shorts and Hawaiian shirts. (Now, was that where I got my Digital Equipment eye-shades with the flashing lights. Think so.)
- Dove 16y agoOptimization. Our peers don't care how we dress. In general, they don't see how we dress. We communicate through code and email. On the other hand, our peers do care about our writing, so our writing is always stylish. The spectrum among hackers starts at cocktail party and runs through business casual and black tie clear into zoot suit. Not a slobby "i agree" in sight.
- steveklabnik 16y agoThis, absolutely. I've actually moved to wearing just striaght-up all black all the time. I'm a tall skinny young dude, so skinny jeans + band tshirt is even almost in style! Half the reason that I've done this is because I can just reach in my drawer and put on anything, and it works. It may not be as optimal, but it's good enough.
- pibefision 16y agoPlease, add DHH. Seems to have a Puma sponsorship :)
- oladon 16y agoThis was good -- although I have to say, we femgeeks don't generally sport beards, I don't think. The rest still applies though.
- gaius 16y agoIt's because we all secretly want to be Gandalf.
- zephjc 16y agoA code wizard is never late, nor is he early; he arrives precisely when he means to, usually around ten-thirty to eleven.
- koenigdavidmj 16y agoAnd 7am if they're married.
- dagw 16y agoSurely I cannot be the only programmer around who enjoys dressing well and taking a certain amount of pride and interest in my appearance. Hacker news and The Sartorialist are the two first bookmarks on my bookmark bar and I find the both equally inspirational.
- shalmanese 16y agoIt's a shame that dressing well actually carries a negative signal in the engineering world rather than just a neutral signal.
- gaius 16y agoThe signal it carries is "interviewing for another job".
- evilduck 16y agoI've always mixed it up a bit from the start, some days dressed nice, others more relaxed...that way, they'll never know when I'm interviewing!
- brianmckenzie 16y agoAt one previous job of mine, the CEO banned me from wearing a sport coat to the office. He thought it was 'bad for team morale, like I thought I was better than everyone else'. Pffft.
- kscaldef 16y agoIndeed. And the equivalence in the mind of the author of beards and unkempt is a little strange, particularly given that most of the beards pictured are nicely trimmed. The commentary on John McCarthy is just bizarre (okay, yes, he does kinda look like Colonel Sanders, but his hair is just wavy, not "crazy").
- borisk 16y agoDressing well, shaving, etc. takes lots and lots of time. Best programmers spend all their time programming or thinking/dreaming about programming ;)
- mattmichielsen 16y agoReminds me of this awesome flash game: http://www.malevole.com/mv/misc/killerquiz/ http://www.malevole.com/mv/misc/killerquiz/
- dca 16y agounder GVR: "...he has an afro that would make Snoop Dog smile." LMAO
- zazi 16y agolol...great post!
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]
- daryn 16y agoI'm wearing a yellow polo and pink plaid linen shorts today.
- camiller 16y agoI think the article was talking about work wear not golf wear.
- thunk 16y agoGiven that we tend to prefer low-to-no maintenance grooming choices, I'm surprised more hackers don't shave (or closely buzz) their heads: 1) You can do it yourself. Never pay for another hair cut. 2) You don't need shampoo or conditioner. Just use whatever you're already using on the rest of you. 3) Nothing needs to be done to make it presentable. 4) It's never itchy or hot or in the way or anything. 5) Works great if you're balding -- confident, like you've accepted the inevitable. 6) You look more like a Buddhist monk.
- Dove 16y agoBut you have to maintain it every couple months or it starts to look scruffy. If you're accustomed to a long hair look, you can forget about it for several months at a time. I'd wager that regular maintainence is the mental cost those guys are trying to avoid.
- varikin 16y agoMonths? I did that a couple years ago and I had to shave my head every other day.
- camiller 16y agoI'd venture he is talking about a short buzz like a military cut. I generally put the number 2 comb on the clippers and have at it, leaves about 1/4-3/8 inch. In the winter I let it get a little longer, go to a #4.
- poutine 16y agoBuy a shaver and do your hair at a #2 once every week or two. It takes 5 minutes to do. Less time than you spend washing and drying your hair by far.
- camiller 16y agoPretty much what I do, except switch to #4 in the winter. And use the tapered ones around the ears.
- jallmann 16y agoSomewhat related: programming language inventor, or serial killer? http://www.malevole.com/mv/misc/killerquiz/ http://www.malevole.com/mv/misc/killerquiz/
- 10ren 16y agoMatz (ruby) is alleged by the following article to have grown a beard due to the claim that they correlate with language success: http://blogs.microsoft.co.il/blogs/tamir/archive/2008/04/28/computer-languages-and-facial-hair-take-two.aspx http://blogs.microsoft.co.il/blogs/tamir/archive/2008/04/28/...
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]
- wyclif 16y ago"The first thing you will need to get started with Emacs is a beard." -- Wilhelm Bierbaum
- mhd 16y agoYou might be right. Vim users seem to get by without it (http://www.moolenaar.net/kopk.jpg http://www.moolenaar.net/kopk.jpg). TextMate users just need a soul patch. Hmm, does this mean there's a marketing opportunity for hipster-oriented Emacs screencasts?
- pavelludiq 16y agoIn my teens i got influenced by punk, and I've been wearing black t-shirts with jeans with holes in them, had unkempt hair and have been shaving every 2 weeks or so, ever since. Yes, i actually try to look like a homeless person as a fashion statement.
- kingkilr 16y agoMy priority is comfort, both physically and socially, that means if I'm somewhere decent, or important it's compfortable to be dressed properly. OTHO I work from home and during the summer time I'll be damned if I'm wearing anything besides shorts and a t-shirt.