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You can start by not driving them away. Seriously. There are a lot of really good programmers who don't tinker or blog in their spare time. If they come acro

You can start by not driving them away. Seriously. There are a lot of really good programmers who don't tinker or blog in their spare time. If they come across an employer who makes a categorical statement that "their kind" is not employable, do you think they'll even bother to send in their resume? As another commenter noted, tinkering with programming on the side is a positive indicator, but not tinkering is not a negative indicator. Good programmers notice the logical mistake here, and it is off-putting.

raganwald 17y ago
Your intent is laudable, but your argument seems to miss what I actually said, which was that I personally would never meet them, not that they weren't qualified or weren't employable. I can't hire someone I don't interview. My experience is that "hiring practices" is a very touchy subject. No matter how precisely you express yourself, people will take things personally because their self-worth is loosely connected to whether other people value their potential inclusion in a team. So I'm not even remotely surprised to find comments like yours.
- techiferous 17y ago
  "Your intent is laudable, but your argument is flawed." Yes, you are correct. In my passion I got carried away and started constructing a strawman. My apologies! "What I said was that I personally would never meet them, not that they weren't qualified or weren't employable." True. I think it touched a nerve with me because I've seen job posts specifically state that they would not consider any programmer who does not have a blog (!). Thanks for bringing up the subject; it's a good one. :)
  - raganwald 17y ago
    Now that I think about it, I'm upmodding your original point. Whether the argument was flawed or not, the very fact that hiring is a touchy subject makes your point necessarily valid: While there may or may not be merit in my practices, blogging about them may be a poor idea.

raganwald 17y ago

Your intent is laudable, but your argument seems to miss what I actually said, which was that I personally would never meet them, not that they weren't qualified or weren't employable. I can't hire someone I don't interview. My experience is that "hiring practices" is a very touchy subject. No matter how precisely you express yourself, people will take things personally because their self-worth is loosely connected to whether other people value their potential inclusion in a team. So I'm not even remotely surprised to find comments like yours.

techiferous 17y ago
"Your intent is laudable, but your argument is flawed." Yes, you are correct. In my passion I got carried away and started constructing a strawman. My apologies! "What I said was that I personally would never meet them, not that they weren't qualified or weren't employable." True. I think it touched a nerve with me because I've seen job posts specifically state that they would not consider any programmer who does not have a blog (!). Thanks for bringing up the subject; it's a good one. :)
- raganwald 17y ago
  Now that I think about it, I'm upmodding your original point. Whether the argument was flawed or not, the very fact that hiring is a touchy subject makes your point necessarily valid: While there may or may not be merit in my practices, blogging about them may be a poor idea.