My coding career began in the mid-70s, and continued until I sold my business and retired with a nice bank account. Early on I learned that free programs were worth every penny I didn't spend.
To this day I am constantly being exposed to shitty software written by programmers who have never shadowed the audience for whom the next great piece of shit software would be used.
My programming career started by computerizing the news room of a newspaper in Bangor, ME.
At the time I was the business editor and knew how the reporters, editors, and layout folks worked.
By the end of the 70s I knew the people I interviewed made a lot more salary than I.
Which lead me to a use my computer skills as an entry into the new world of "personal" computers being used in Boston for business use.
Did well for a couple of years but consulting work became repetitious, so I decided to start a computer services company in my home town of Bangor, ME.
It was my first try at running a small company, and within a few years it came apparent that I had a lot to learn. Short story long, my little company never really made a profit.
As the saying goes, third time can be the charm.
My business mentor was the president of the local hydro electric company.
His company provided almost all the electricity to folks in central and northern Maine. He had tutored me about what business leaders want to read, and thus made me a better reporter and editor.
Already in my mid 30s, I decided to create a company that developed software for the maritime, naval, and coast guard facilities in the U.S. as well as Canada and a few EU organizations.
I approached my mentor once again, and this time he suggested that I start small. Create a program that would provide off shore navigators a quick way to get an accurate celestial "fix."
His advice grew to adding more modules to my first celestial navigation application. Then he suggested I add a module to calculate tide and current tables for a mariner's position.
Each step up the ladder of applications attracted a larger audience. Finally, I and my collaborator worked on adding a module that would do for mariners what would eventually become common in cars and trucks.
People wanted to see their vessel in real time on a digital chart as they moved among the many hazards mariners face.
Thus the little company created using the advice of my mentor became the first Windows based program that was useful to an entire industry, including large commercial ships, the U.S. and Canadian navies, the U.S. Coast Guard, and tens of thousands of people who enjoyed cruising the east and the west coasts.
The most important thing I learned was to create a product that was based on things I already knew, and thus had knowledge of how people would use my software.
In other words, my mentor trained me to listen to my customers and stop listening to the evil devil on my shoulder that gave me bad advice.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your essay, Klause. Thank you.
I can't tell you how many times I've tried out new tools only to run into the "no one has resolved this particular error" paradigm. I can usually muscle my way through but there have been a few I couldn't resolve that stopped me in my tracks. Such a waste of time.
The alt version of this is when you are able to succeed. I've rescued my computer twice from viruses by being able to dig down and find out what the viruses had attacked (using tools of course). This, too, was time consuming but at least I won the round and saved my production environment. And then immediately installed better security software. Lesson learned.
The only thing I would say about this is that high level, commercial, closed source software can often also be like a pile of air fryer parts and a manual in Mandarin.
I just loved this article, Klaus! I think there are so many phenomena like what you describe, where businesses have outsourced part of the job to consumers--without paying us, of course. QR code restaurant menus are the current target of my wrath. Why do we have to use our own data on our phones to look at a menu that used to be part of the basic restaurant package?! I want to talk to a human waiter, dagnabbit, and not just because I always have several special requests like no ice on my Scotch and no onions on my sandwich. It is nice to interact with a human being; I don’t want to spend the first fifteen minutes out to dinner typing things into my phone!
I don’t want to sound anti-economist but there is a pernicious influence of economic thought. This is why we see a market flooded with terrible products and services. There’s no accounting for the negative effectives of these things.
Plus whomever first came up with the idea of “if people didn’t benefit from it they wouldn’t do it” which is proof we need to make the world far more dangerous to weed out the stupid.
I feel your frustration, Klaus.
My coding career began in the mid-70s, and continued until I sold my business and retired with a nice bank account. Early on I learned that free programs were worth every penny I didn't spend.
To this day I am constantly being exposed to shitty software written by programmers who have never shadowed the audience for whom the next great piece of shit software would be used.
My programming career started by computerizing the news room of a newspaper in Bangor, ME.
At the time I was the business editor and knew how the reporters, editors, and layout folks worked.
By the end of the 70s I knew the people I interviewed made a lot more salary than I.
Which lead me to a use my computer skills as an entry into the new world of "personal" computers being used in Boston for business use.
Did well for a couple of years but consulting work became repetitious, so I decided to start a computer services company in my home town of Bangor, ME.
It was my first try at running a small company, and within a few years it came apparent that I had a lot to learn. Short story long, my little company never really made a profit.
As the saying goes, third time can be the charm.
My business mentor was the president of the local hydro electric company.
His company provided almost all the electricity to folks in central and northern Maine. He had tutored me about what business leaders want to read, and thus made me a better reporter and editor.
Already in my mid 30s, I decided to create a company that developed software for the maritime, naval, and coast guard facilities in the U.S. as well as Canada and a few EU organizations.
I approached my mentor once again, and this time he suggested that I start small. Create a program that would provide off shore navigators a quick way to get an accurate celestial "fix."
His advice grew to adding more modules to my first celestial navigation application. Then he suggested I add a module to calculate tide and current tables for a mariner's position.
Each step up the ladder of applications attracted a larger audience. Finally, I and my collaborator worked on adding a module that would do for mariners what would eventually become common in cars and trucks.
People wanted to see their vessel in real time on a digital chart as they moved among the many hazards mariners face.
Thus the little company created using the advice of my mentor became the first Windows based program that was useful to an entire industry, including large commercial ships, the U.S. and Canadian navies, the U.S. Coast Guard, and tens of thousands of people who enjoyed cruising the east and the west coasts.
The most important thing I learned was to create a product that was based on things I already knew, and thus had knowledge of how people would use my software.
In other words, my mentor trained me to listen to my customers and stop listening to the evil devil on my shoulder that gave me bad advice.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your essay, Klause. Thank you.
I can't tell you how many times I've tried out new tools only to run into the "no one has resolved this particular error" paradigm. I can usually muscle my way through but there have been a few I couldn't resolve that stopped me in my tracks. Such a waste of time.
The alt version of this is when you are able to succeed. I've rescued my computer twice from viruses by being able to dig down and find out what the viruses had attacked (using tools of course). This, too, was time consuming but at least I won the round and saved my production environment. And then immediately installed better security software. Lesson learned.
The only thing I would say about this is that high level, commercial, closed source software can often also be like a pile of air fryer parts and a manual in Mandarin.
I just loved this article, Klaus! I think there are so many phenomena like what you describe, where businesses have outsourced part of the job to consumers--without paying us, of course. QR code restaurant menus are the current target of my wrath. Why do we have to use our own data on our phones to look at a menu that used to be part of the basic restaurant package?! I want to talk to a human waiter, dagnabbit, and not just because I always have several special requests like no ice on my Scotch and no onions on my sandwich. It is nice to interact with a human being; I don’t want to spend the first fifteen minutes out to dinner typing things into my phone!
But wait what was the error you got? ;)
Sagrada sounds frustrating but looks pretty.
Re the other stuff... it’s the IKEA-fication of products.
I don’t want to sound anti-economist but there is a pernicious influence of economic thought. This is why we see a market flooded with terrible products and services. There’s no accounting for the negative effectives of these things.
Plus whomever first came up with the idea of “if people didn’t benefit from it they wouldn’t do it” which is proof we need to make the world far more dangerous to weed out the stupid.