RE: What counts as technically slick?

IMHO, no matter how new of a technology you're using, something can't 
be qualified as "T.S." or even "technically competent" if it won't work
in a live environment.

Part of making it "slick" is designing something that will solve the 
business problems!



On Thu, 5 Apr 2001, Jim Damato wrote:

> It cuts both ways.  My second job was for a large System 38 shop where some
> of the "most technically competent programmers" were all co-opted by one
> Director who put them all on the sweetest development projects.  As I
> started these folks were just finishing up an application rewrite that took
> advantage of the coolness of the new OPNQRYF command.  This Director viewed
> most of his staff as dullards who couldn't cope with the change from RPG II
> to RPG III, and who didn't take the time to learn and use something as slick
> as OPNQRYF.  The system crashed and burned when it went live because the
> team didn't realize what their code was going to do (build huge access paths
> on the fly) with production data.  Other teams had to go in and shoehorn
> position and read logic all over the place to replace all the OPNQRYF logic,
> reacting to major performance problems for months after the fact.  The best
> and the brightest went on to failed client-server attempt after
> client-server attempt, eventually being retrained on Sybase and VB.  I
> distinctly remember one of them arguing with a data entry user who didn't
> understand why she had to use a mouse on her order entry screen.  I'm sure
> they're all developing x-tier web apps. on Oracle for companies needing
> applications that are good enough, with as few administration points (points
> of failure) as possible.
> 
> I'd love to hire the most technically competent programmer as long as he or
> she knows how to exercise restraint.
> 

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