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Interesting points. A follow-up question for you regarding your belief in the focus on quantity over quality. In your opinion, do you think that the perceived

by fecak 13y ago

Interesting points. A follow-up question for you regarding your belief in the focus on quantity over quality. In your opinion, do you think that the perceived focus on quantity over quality is representative of the culture of some Java shops or a function of the Java language itself (a necessity for more programmers due to the nature of the language)? I've run one of the larger Java Users' Groups in the US (Philadelphia) for over 13 years, but I keep a very open mind on things, and I have been critical of elements of the Java space in the past.

bad_user 13y ago
I think it's about the culture. Many Java shops are simply assembly lines. And really, it's logical - if you want to build an assembly line, you pick a popular language for which you've got not problem in finding cheaper developers. This isn't representative of all Java shops btw. And if you've got a different perspective due to your involvement in a JUG, you do have to keep in mind that people (or companies) joining a JUG do so because they want to be a part of a community, or for the learning experience, which is why JUG members are not representative.
- fecak 13y ago
  This is definitely not representative of all Java shops, but I'd agree that some (many) are as you describe. I think the perspective that I get from JUG, where I have interacted regularly with hundreds of Java pros over a 10+ year period, gives me a sense of the morale of the Java community and their feelings about Java. I wrote an article about this last year (http://jobtipsforgeeks.com/2012/07/11/advice-from-a-jug-leader-learn-a-different-language/ http://jobtipsforgeeks.com/2012/07/11/advice-from-a-jug-lead...) that goes into the sudden spike in interest for topics that were not Java language specific, and our transition into a group focused more around the JVM than just the language. This transition was driven by what I generally considered the unofficial though leadership of the group, who were gravitating away from the language. This is just around the time of the Sun acquisition when this became most obvious, which may have precipitated some of the changes.

by fecak 13y ago

bad_user 13y ago

I think it's about the culture. Many Java shops are simply assembly lines. And really, it's logical - if you want to build an assembly line, you pick a popular language for which you've got not problem in finding cheaper developers. This isn't representative of all Java shops btw. And if you've got a different perspective due to your involvement in a JUG, you do have to keep in mind that people (or companies) joining a JUG do so because they want to be a part of a community, or for the learning experience, which is why JUG members are not representative.

fecak 13y ago
This is definitely not representative of all Java shops, but I'd agree that some (many) are as you describe. I think the perspective that I get from JUG, where I have interacted regularly with hundreds of Java pros over a 10+ year period, gives me a sense of the morale of the Java community and their feelings about Java. I wrote an article about this last year (http://jobtipsforgeeks.com/2012/07/11/advice-from-a-jug-leader-learn-a-different-language/ http://jobtipsforgeeks.com/2012/07/11/advice-from-a-jug-lead...) that goes into the sudden spike in interest for topics that were not Java language specific, and our transition into a group focused more around the JVM than just the language. This transition was driven by what I generally considered the unofficial though leadership of the group, who were gravitating away from the language. This is just around the time of the Sun acquisition when this became most obvious, which may have precipitated some of the changes.