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As someone who has worked for more than one agency, reading this list is like listening to a high schooler complain about getting up early for school. Yes it's

As someone who has worked for more than one agency, reading this list is like listening to a high schooler complain about getting up early for school. Yes it's a pain and there's lots of good reasons for change, but there's also probably reasons you're not familiar with (or care about) that make it necessary. Also, some of these are really stretching: >> 3. You tether developers to their desk Not having Wifi is a dealbreaker? I don't know about the author, but i became an engineer because i wanted to build things. If the problem is interesting, does it really matter if you can't go 'chill in the lobby' with your laptop? >> 10. New technologies are guilty until proven innocent When managing anything that can vitally affect many people it's important to not just jump on the next bandwagon. This is engineering 101. >> 13. Speaking at conferences is tightly controlled What? Are you talking about OPSEC procedures or travel limitations or what exactly? >> 16. You measure your hiring process in months Your freaky fast startup is what...5..100 employees? Come on, an agency (while can be small) is part of something much much larger. Also many agencies require a full background check and/or security clearance. >> 18. Recruitment is unheard of Just because you're not getting spam from NASA or your local gov about an 'exciting opportunity to change the world' doesn't mean agencies don't attend job fair, offer scholarships, and recruit talent. >> 19. You block half the internet - I honestly don’t know how I’d do my job without social networks like Twitter. Really? "It’s not unsurprising that many government employees are out of the loop", like we can't or won't read/browse/learn things on our own time. Get off your petastle.

angersock 11y ago
The stuff I'd actually complain about would be the assumptions about continuous integration and continuous deployment--while those are always long-term goals, a lot fo companies never do them. :( Especially on 19, though, I feel their pain. If the .gov feels it's important to protect developers from their own curiosity and browsing, fat fucking chance they'll retain anyone interesting.
- therobot24 11y ago
  I can't deny that it does hurt, but it's not really a dealbreaker until that random forum that you think has a similar answer to what you're looking for is blocked - most of the time i just bookmark links to read on the bus/when i get home
ceequof 11y ago
Get off your petastle. Petastle, eh? If only you had access to dictionary dot com.
- therobot24 11y ago
  or maybe a typo
skybrian 11y ago
It does sound a bit entitled but you're not seeing the advantages. WiFi is useful for using computers in meetings, both formal and informal. Also, though it's not on the list, being able to work from home or while traveling is also important. It's harder to secure but there are ways.
- nikanj 11y ago
  In my experience, meeting efficiency has a strong inverse correlation with the amount of internet available. In theory it should be nice to be able to fact check something mid-meeting, but in practice it's mostly a distraction. Can't check twitter mid-meeting? Good.
caseysoftware 11y ago
I had a similar reaction to you but disagree with you on a few: >> 13. Speaking at conferences is tightly controlled > What? Are you talking about OPSEC procedures or travel limitations or what exactly? I spent a good deal of time working for the US Feds and it wasn't just travel limitations. Due to the fact that we couldn't accept "gifts," I wasn't able to accept the speaker package (flight+hotel) that was offered to every speaker so my supervisor could make the budget argument. >> 16. You measure your hiring process in months > Your freaky fast startup is what...5..100 employees? Come on, an agency (while can be small) is part of something much much larger. Also many agencies require a full background check and/or security clearance. This is a straw man. Many agencies require a full background check for no particular reason. Further, a fingerprint check with IAFIS and even a National Agency Check can be done in a matter of days. Regardless, to hire people in a field in demand, months is ridiculous. And it's not just the length of the process but the lack of information. The last time I was working for the Feds, I applied for a new position and waited ~30 days until they acknowledged the application, another ~30 days for the first call, a couple weeks for the first interview, and then another ~30 days for the followup. In the meantime, I joined a company and was deep into my first project.

angersock 11y ago

The stuff I'd actually complain about would be the assumptions about continuous integration and continuous deployment--while those are always long-term goals, a lot fo companies never do them. :( Especially on 19, though, I feel their pain. If the .gov feels it's important to protect developers from their own curiosity and browsing, fat fucking chance they'll retain anyone interesting.

therobot24 11y ago
I can't deny that it does hurt, but it's not really a dealbreaker until that random forum that you think has a similar answer to what you're looking for is blocked - most of the time i just bookmark links to read on the bus/when i get home

ceequof 11y ago

Get off your petastle. Petastle, eh? If only you had access to dictionary dot com.

therobot24 11y ago
or maybe a typo

skybrian 11y ago

It does sound a bit entitled but you're not seeing the advantages. WiFi is useful for using computers in meetings, both formal and informal. Also, though it's not on the list, being able to work from home or while traveling is also important. It's harder to secure but there are ways.

nikanj 11y ago
In my experience, meeting efficiency has a strong inverse correlation with the amount of internet available. In theory it should be nice to be able to fact check something mid-meeting, but in practice it's mostly a distraction. Can't check twitter mid-meeting? Good.

caseysoftware 11y ago

I had a similar reaction to you but disagree with you on a few: >> 13. Speaking at conferences is tightly controlled > What? Are you talking about OPSEC procedures or travel limitations or what exactly? I spent a good deal of time working for the US Feds and it wasn't just travel limitations. Due to the fact that we couldn't accept "gifts," I wasn't able to accept the speaker package (flight+hotel) that was offered to every speaker so my supervisor could make the budget argument. >> 16. You measure your hiring process in months > Your freaky fast startup is what...5..100 employees? Come on, an agency (while can be small) is part of something much much larger. Also many agencies require a full background check and/or security clearance. This is a straw man. Many agencies require a full background check for no particular reason. Further, a fingerprint check with IAFIS and even a National Agency Check can be done in a matter of days. Regardless, to hire people in a field in demand, months is ridiculous. And it's not just the length of the process but the lack of information. The last time I was working for the Feds, I applied for a new position and waited ~30 days until they acknowledged the application, another ~30 days for the first call, a couple weeks for the first interview, and then another ~30 days for the followup. In the meantime, I joined a company and was deep into my first project.