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> Nothing about that plan precludes a fixed fee option in situations where a future percentage doesn't make sense. That doesn't really answer his questions tho

> Nothing about that plan precludes a fixed fee option in situations where a future percentage doesn't make sense. That doesn't really answer his questions though. Professionally, I work as a software developer and a farmer. If I had taken the percentage of future income option while receiving my CS degree thinking that's all I'd ever do, would the school be entitled to the profits from my farm too? I didn't even consider farming until I was 26, so it's definitely in the realm of possibility.

philwelch 15y ago
I'm massively curious about how you got into farming and how you do that alongside software development.
- randomdata 15y ago
  I grew up on a farm, so I was not without connections, but it was actually on the suggestion of my father that I got started down that path. I knew pretty early on that programming was my thing. That was where I put all my focus, getting my first part-time dev job in high school. Farming wasn't even a consideration in my mind. It was only after working full-time in the software game for a few of years, dad approached me and suggested that I take some of the money I had earned, find some land to rent, and buy some crop inputs with it. I agreed that it sounded like a good plan, and he helped me put it in motion. My farm is strictly cash crop, so the work is highly seasonal. Right around this time in the spring and later in the fall there is a lot of work to do, but the rest of the year is fairly light on the time required of me. The second thing that made it work is that I was already telecommuting and my hours were flexible. There have been days where I've been in the field all day and working on code all night. Additionally, it's not completely unheard of to find me writing code from the seat of the tractor. Mobile internet access has been a lifesaver. I hadn't really considered this to be an interesting topic to the HN crowd, but maybe I should write up a more detailed blog post about it?
  - learc83 15y ago
    >but maybe I should write up a more detailed blog post about it? Yes you should write more about this. It's fascinating. And to answer your previous question about whether the college would get a percentage of your farm income, I would have to say yes. The option of limiting their stake to a particular profession would introduce too many loopholes. For instance I could get a math degree, and sign something giving them a share of all future earnings as a mathematician--then work as a programmer instead. That being said I'm sure there could be some sort of maximum. Student loans already work somewhat similarly. There is an option to pay off loans based on a percentage of your total income, so you are in effect paying x percent of your income for y number of years.

philwelch 15y ago

I'm massively curious about how you got into farming and how you do that alongside software development.

randomdata 15y ago
I grew up on a farm, so I was not without connections, but it was actually on the suggestion of my father that I got started down that path. I knew pretty early on that programming was my thing. That was where I put all my focus, getting my first part-time dev job in high school. Farming wasn't even a consideration in my mind. It was only after working full-time in the software game for a few of years, dad approached me and suggested that I take some of the money I had earned, find some land to rent, and buy some crop inputs with it. I agreed that it sounded like a good plan, and he helped me put it in motion. My farm is strictly cash crop, so the work is highly seasonal. Right around this time in the spring and later in the fall there is a lot of work to do, but the rest of the year is fairly light on the time required of me. The second thing that made it work is that I was already telecommuting and my hours were flexible. There have been days where I've been in the field all day and working on code all night. Additionally, it's not completely unheard of to find me writing code from the seat of the tractor. Mobile internet access has been a lifesaver. I hadn't really considered this to be an interesting topic to the HN crowd, but maybe I should write up a more detailed blog post about it?
- learc83 15y ago
  >but maybe I should write up a more detailed blog post about it? Yes you should write more about this. It's fascinating. And to answer your previous question about whether the college would get a percentage of your farm income, I would have to say yes. The option of limiting their stake to a particular profession would introduce too many loopholes. For instance I could get a math degree, and sign something giving them a share of all future earnings as a mathematician--then work as a programmer instead. That being said I'm sure there could be some sort of maximum. Student loans already work somewhat similarly. There is an option to pay off loans based on a percentage of your total income, so you are in effect paying x percent of your income for y number of years.