4 ms·

Paul Buchheit: Can you see the wolves in your organization?

12 points by abstractbill 19y ago

JMiao 19y ago
Emperor Palpatine.
- JMiao 19y ago
  Just think about this. Sorry for the person who downmodded me, but I'm serious.
budu3 19y ago
So the wolves are those who play office politics?
sbraford 19y ago
I'm guessing from his note at the end that the story was originally told by one of his friends at MS?
- ajju 19y ago
  No. How can someone at MS and someone at Google have the same wolf? It's Google Kirkland I suspect.
  - sbraford 19y ago
    The same metaphorical wolf. Not the exact. same. wolf.
staunch 19y ago
Tichy 19y ago
I didn't understand the story. So essentially, if too many Marshmallows start showing up, something bad is going to happen? Seems to me I have read more profound things on news.YC before.
- ph0rque 19y ago
  I think I get the marshmallows (beaurocracy?), but how do the wolves relate to the marshmallows, and why do they make sheep look like marshmallows with ketchup?
  - Darmani 19y ago
    There is evidence to say that marshmallows are bureaucracy and office politics, and eating them is engaging in those activities, but there is also strong evidence to support that marshmallows are bugs (and eating them is fixing them). They are likely both. Remember the third M. This essay seems to both comment on Google and its bureaucracy, and Wyvern, full of bugs and a poor architecture created by a less experienced Steve Yegge, which he has been trying to improve since taking it offline nine months ago.
- brlewis 19y ago
  I think Yegge was deliberately obtuse with the marshmallows until the very end. He finally reveals that they represent eating your own dog food, i.e. a company using its own tools whether they're best for the job at hand or not. Programmers whose productivity has been killed in this way are the mangled sheep, or marshmallows with ketchup.
- budu3 19y ago
  I think the landowner represents the company founders. The wolves are the suites who come in later. The marshmellows are things that creep into the organization when it starts growing like cooperate BS, politics, poor internal company tool etc. The story teller is someone who just left such an organization and is attracting a cult following of young fresh faces hackers/entrepreneurs/engineers/workers etc.
  - ajju 19y ago
    ""I don't know what I'll do next, but I suspect it will involve teaching some sheep a few basic fighting maneuvers, and also a fair amount of long-overdue repair to our floating platform and our in-progress mansion." I don't think Rauser is leaving the organization.
ralph 19y ago
If you think the wolves are bad, look out for those that give them counsel. http://www.askoxford.com/firstnames/ralph?view=uk http://www.askoxford.com/firstnames/ralph?view=uk :-)

12 points by abstractbill 19y ago

JMiao 19y ago

Emperor Palpatine.

JMiao 19y ago
Just think about this. Sorry for the person who downmodded me, but I'm serious.

budu3 19y ago

So the wolves are those who play office politics?

sbraford 19y ago

I'm guessing from his note at the end that the story was originally told by one of his friends at MS?

ajju 19y ago
No. How can someone at MS and someone at Google have the same wolf? It's Google Kirkland I suspect.
- sbraford 19y ago
  The same metaphorical wolf. Not the exact. same. wolf.

staunch 19y ago

Tichy 19y ago

I didn't understand the story. So essentially, if too many Marshmallows start showing up, something bad is going to happen? Seems to me I have read more profound things on news.YC before.

ph0rque 19y ago
I think I get the marshmallows (beaurocracy?), but how do the wolves relate to the marshmallows, and why do they make sheep look like marshmallows with ketchup?
- Darmani 19y ago
  There is evidence to say that marshmallows are bureaucracy and office politics, and eating them is engaging in those activities, but there is also strong evidence to support that marshmallows are bugs (and eating them is fixing them). They are likely both. Remember the third M. This essay seems to both comment on Google and its bureaucracy, and Wyvern, full of bugs and a poor architecture created by a less experienced Steve Yegge, which he has been trying to improve since taking it offline nine months ago.
brlewis 19y ago
I think Yegge was deliberately obtuse with the marshmallows until the very end. He finally reveals that they represent eating your own dog food, i.e. a company using its own tools whether they're best for the job at hand or not. Programmers whose productivity has been killed in this way are the mangled sheep, or marshmallows with ketchup.
budu3 19y ago
I think the landowner represents the company founders. The wolves are the suites who come in later. The marshmellows are things that creep into the organization when it starts growing like cooperate BS, politics, poor internal company tool etc. The story teller is someone who just left such an organization and is attracting a cult following of young fresh faces hackers/entrepreneurs/engineers/workers etc.
- ajju 19y ago
  ""I don't know what I'll do next, but I suspect it will involve teaching some sheep a few basic fighting maneuvers, and also a fair amount of long-overdue repair to our floating platform and our in-progress mansion." I don't think Rauser is leaving the organization.

ralph 19y ago

If you think the wolves are bad, look out for those that give them counsel. http://www.askoxford.com/firstnames/ralph?view=uk http://www.askoxford.com/firstnames/ralph?view=uk :-)