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Just a few comments about bioinformatics: - most of the work to be done is the same boring stuff you do at a startup: maintain the server farm, deal with flaky

Just a few comments about bioinformatics: - most of the work to be done is the same boring stuff you do at a startup: maintain the server farm, deal with flaky libraries, tune the database. The interesting algorithm work is done by PhDs... at universities. - the bullshit factor at bioinformatics companies is as high or higher than the trivial startups you mention. You are ultimately working on tools that people don't really know how to use and trying to sell them to people that probably don't need them. The only "real" customers are pharma companies or larger biotech firms. This makes the environment much like working for an enterprise software vendor which everyone knows isn't very fun. - the bioinformatics companies are either in glamorous places like New Jersey, Boston suburbs or... Silicon Valley. So, you're unlikely to be able to escape from the SV scene anyway. - at a startup these days, you at least can use slightly less painful tools like ruby and python. In bioinformatics, you are stuck with ancient Perl/CGI scripts or some VB/Java time bomb. I spent 2 years in bioinformatics and will be forever grateful that I was given the opportunity to escape and work on silly, pointless consumer entertainment software instead.

tomh 19y ago
To dovetail on the complaints about bioinformatics; most of the government grants are given to PIs, or Principal Investigators, who are a notoriously clannish bunch and each one has free license to operate as they want. IT can be lower on the priority list for them than say, the bio-stats geeks who work exclusively in Excel, SAS, SPSS, etc. So, you're either working for the 'enterprise software vendor' (ie big pharma) or you obey the whim of the PI, which is like client work for people who, again, don't really want to listen to you anyway. 'Just get it to work' is the prevailing attitude. The only notable exception would be if you were to get into bioinformatics outside of the USA. Try to find some work with either EU orgs (entirely govt sponsored research), such as the World Health Organization in Geneva, or take a look at what orgs are doing with public health research in developing countries. If you find a better ways to assist with AIDS research in Africa, you would be doing the world a bigger favor than currying favor to the pointy-headed in the US. In short, look to the frontiers of modern society. They probably have needs that seem elementary to us, but are real and need solving, now.
paulsb 19y ago
menloparkbum, if you are interested in solving the problems you mentioned, then please get in touch (my email is my profile page). One of the aspects of my start-up is to solve the problems you have mentioned.
- paulsb 19y ago
  Hashbucket, if you're interested in applying powerful algorithms to semantic searching within science, including bioinformatics, then get in touch.
alex_c 19y ago
"In bioinformatics, you are stuck with ancient Perl/CGI scripts or some VB/Java time bomb." Out of curiosity, why is that?

tomh 19y ago

To dovetail on the complaints about bioinformatics; most of the government grants are given to PIs, or Principal Investigators, who are a notoriously clannish bunch and each one has free license to operate as they want. IT can be lower on the priority list for them than say, the bio-stats geeks who work exclusively in Excel, SAS, SPSS, etc. So, you're either working for the 'enterprise software vendor' (ie big pharma) or you obey the whim of the PI, which is like client work for people who, again, don't really want to listen to you anyway. 'Just get it to work' is the prevailing attitude. The only notable exception would be if you were to get into bioinformatics outside of the USA. Try to find some work with either EU orgs (entirely govt sponsored research), such as the World Health Organization in Geneva, or take a look at what orgs are doing with public health research in developing countries. If you find a better ways to assist with AIDS research in Africa, you would be doing the world a bigger favor than currying favor to the pointy-headed in the US. In short, look to the frontiers of modern society. They probably have needs that seem elementary to us, but are real and need solving, now.

paulsb 19y ago

menloparkbum, if you are interested in solving the problems you mentioned, then please get in touch (my email is my profile page). One of the aspects of my start-up is to solve the problems you have mentioned.

paulsb 19y ago
Hashbucket, if you're interested in applying powerful algorithms to semantic searching within science, including bioinformatics, then get in touch.

alex_c 19y ago

"In bioinformatics, you are stuck with ancient Perl/CGI scripts or some VB/Java time bomb." Out of curiosity, why is that?