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"I'm sure if a team of skilled driver/mechanic hybrids was the difference between a mediocre or failed business, and multi-multi-million-dollar paydays" That's

by larrys 15y ago

"I'm sure if a team of skilled driver/mechanic hybrids was the difference between a mediocre or failed business, and multi-multi-million-dollar paydays" That's because your buying into the meme stating a good programmer is worth 100 times more (totally arbitrary btw) a mediocre one. Or something like that. All this dates back to "Wozniak/Allen" can write a basic compiler in a weekend falacy. And of course the brass ring multi million dollar payday that everyone wants even if they go down in flames (and most of course will). The point being made seems to be that there is a tendency in help wanted advertising to try to get the entire kitchen sink.

mattdeboard 15y ago
I'm not really sure it's a "meme" that the worth of a programmer is an exponential function of his skill. Seems like I've read that this is the case (not 100 times more, never heard that, that's your own rhetoric coloring your faulty interpretation of what I said) many times over from articles linked right here on HackerNews. I'm not going to argue with you about whether or not a skilled programmer is much, much more valuable than a mediocre/apathetic one, because that would be the world's silliest argument. A skilled anything is much, much more valuable than a mediocre and disinterested one.
- larrys 15y ago
  What I'm referring to actually is an old quote attributed to Bill Gates : "A great lathe operator commands several times the wage of an average lathe operator, but a great writer of software code is worth 10,000 times the price of an average software writer." ...which I've seen variations of lately.
ramanujan 15y ago
There have been probably several hundred multimillion dollar acquisitions in the valley over the last 5-6 years. It's not that rare. And many of those were talent acquisitions. Which seems to support Mr. Deboard's point.
- larrys 15y ago
  But that is rare when compared to the number of people who are in the game. Similar to sports and entertainment business for that matter. The chance of hitting it big drives entire industries.

by larrys 15y ago

mattdeboard 15y ago

I'm not really sure it's a "meme" that the worth of a programmer is an exponential function of his skill. Seems like I've read that this is the case (not 100 times more, never heard that, that's your own rhetoric coloring your faulty interpretation of what I said) many times over from articles linked right here on HackerNews. I'm not going to argue with you about whether or not a skilled programmer is much, much more valuable than a mediocre/apathetic one, because that would be the world's silliest argument. A skilled anything is much, much more valuable than a mediocre and disinterested one.

larrys 15y ago
What I'm referring to actually is an old quote attributed to Bill Gates : "A great lathe operator commands several times the wage of an average lathe operator, but a great writer of software code is worth 10,000 times the price of an average software writer." ...which I've seen variations of lately.

ramanujan 15y ago

There have been probably several hundred multimillion dollar acquisitions in the valley over the last 5-6 years. It's not that rare. And many of those were talent acquisitions. Which seems to support Mr. Deboard's point.

larrys 15y ago
But that is rare when compared to the number of people who are in the game. Similar to sports and entertainment business for that matter. The chance of hitting it big drives entire industries.