Anyone working as a programmer?

[Flaminglacier]

I start college in fall and I will be majoring in Computer Science. I had a few questions for anyone who has majored in computer science or has had a job related to programming before.

I've heard a lot of people say that working as a programmer is hell. Working 13 hours per day 7 days a week, dealing with asshole managers who have no idea about what they are talking about or what they want, and dead lines that get pushed sooner forcing you into crunch time. I wouldnt mind staying a few hours extra to finish up a program every once in a while but so far people on the internet make it seem like a 9-5 job just doesnt happen in the programming industry. I love programming and solving analytical problems by developing programs but I also have a life that doesnt involve being on a computer. Anyone have experience as a programmer they would like to tell me about?

Also is it true that programming jobs are easier to get with experience, certifications, and an associates of applied science in software development then someone with a BS in Computer Science?

Last thing, what jobs can you get with a computer science degree other than a programming job and geek squad?

I love programming and I heard that programming can be really fun as a hobby but as a job programming can be a nightmare.

[ibm5155]

Well, if I would go back and select a course, because at least where I'm doing it, I'm not getting prepared to get a jub, and yes to be a researchers...
The thing is, to get a job nowadays, the minimun you need to know is java and sql (ofc mysql and oracle software too), and there, I only learned C, it's a cool language, but, almost noone here see a job where you need...
I would select System Analysis, because they'll learn what companies want you to work...

Well I'll have a job, (not on IBM but anyway), I see friends working, and it's cool, I don't heard people talking about asshole managers, but I know there's a true into companies, the joke comments like

Code: Select all

//Do not change that line below, not even god know how to fix it
//please, if you try to fix it, increase the hours lost counter
//hours lost counter:10

hmm you could get a tester, developer, and software manager jobs, a teacher, maybe there're more...

I think it's normal experience, it'll be easy most of times to know how a language works, but it may be hard to know how a new hardware works and get a certification of it...

And finally, programming is cool, even with acs, not being a real language, is cool too...
And, if you want to go in this area, be ready, there'll be math, and not basic math (things like analytic geometry >.,< ,...)...
Maybe Torr could give us a lasson about math :lol:

EDIT:
Maybe for someone be nightmare because they'll need to work with things that they don't like, like C# (being a windows fanhater), math, database (why I'm adding data to database, I should be creating softwares), programming (really, I got a software to fix with chinese comments and all the vars was just a,b,c,...)

[Zalewa]

I'm a professional programmer and working for about 4 years in an international corporation. My experiences are completely opposite of the fucktarded bullshit that you can read about on sites like thedailywtf. Please note that people on the Internet usually write about stuff that bothers them and stay quiet when everything is ok, so you can't really build any relevant statistics just basing on such opinions.

My company is a pretty good place to work in and I don't have any serious issues to complain about. I work 8 hours a day, 5 days per week, and overtime occurs only in very unusual cases. The only thing that surprises me is that most of the time people enforce usage of Windows where Linux would do the job better. For example, if they want to build a machine that's only purpose is to host a DHCP and TFTP servers, they install Windows and tamper with obscure software that works in really surprising ways. Debian or Ubuntu could be used to solve the same problem much easier. Also, we have some guys who write spaghetti code, but still they get the job done and surprisingly their programs aren't buggy.

My manager is a cool guy to work with. He understands both sides of his job, so explaining technical stuff to him isn't a problem and he's very understanding when we estimate stuff like deadlines or possible obstacles that can hinder our progress. Moreover, I'm given a lot of freedom regarding the design concepts of our software, but that's perhaps because we're developing a system that is mainly used in-house (but not only). Naturally, there are feature requests "from the top", but it's usually up to me how will they work in the end and how will they be made available to the user.

I use Python, Java and C++ at work as our system consists of three different programs written in three different languages. I'd say the most important things to know and to remember is how to handle distributed versioning systems properly, which libraries to use to solve given problems and when, and when you solve a complicated problem you should write down how you did it and possibly create scripts that will make solving this problem easier in the future. On the other hand it's sometimes useful to not use a library and reinvent the wheel, but these cases should be very rare. Also, when you work with different languages you shouldn't try to misuse them just because a given feature works very well in another language. For example, don't do type-checking in Python just because you're used to Java where it's enforced by the compiler. Python has a different philosophy regarding this and works best when you stick to that philosophy.

I got my job through university, therefore I was lucky enough to skip all sorts of job interviews. I've never been in a job interview in my life and never had to send any job requests to companies. This is basically one of the few good things that I got from my 3,5 years in university, as most of this was either teachers and students both not giving a damn, or teachers giving too much of a damn (by this I mean mental torture) about things that are almost completely useless unless you want to become a computer language developer or a scientist yourself (or a electrician!) So I just taught myself. I also have no certificates at all, not even a driver license.

And, if you want to go in this area, be ready, there'll be math, and not basic math (things like analytic geometry >.,< ,...)...

Not really, unless you want to get into game programming. I tried that 4 times now, only once I produced something that actually worked and wasn't very proud of it. Most of the time other kinds of programming involve no math at all, or just basic stuff like adding two numbers together.

[Absolute Zero]

Kinda tried to go into programming, it's something I like and decided to leave it as a hobby. I left the idea because somehow, programming stresses/frustrates me a bit, although I don't have a real problem to understand and build concepts of algorithms and diagrams (that usually stays in my mind and then it's lost as time goes).

[agaures]

I started learning C++. Really wanted to get into it.... just kinda slipped away.

[jwaffe]

I've heard a lot of people say that working as a programmer is hell. Working 13 hours per day 7 days a week, ...

I can confirm that for me this is the case (I usually work 70-80 hour weeks, been that way for the past year or so, except holidays), but I think it depends on what you go into, what company you work for, what project you're assigned to, and possibly even where (geographically) you work.

[Tiger]

I am a also a student, with a primary focus on Computer Science. First off, I'll say this now - if you do not have a true passion with 'computers', than you need to rethink your focus studies. With Computer Science, you're going to focus on both the hardware level and the programming level simultaneously most of the time -- the consequences of a endless-loop that re-declares several identifiers at once, not only are you wasting CPU time, but the CPU and the RAM chips are going to run slightly hot in such cases. On the plus side, you found a perfect heater when your room gets cold and your computer is the only heater around ;) or how dangerous floating point numbers truly are if not given the right amount of bits. Second, if your weakness is maths (like me), get ready for a unruly hell for awhile :P. Thirdly, if you have one of the universities that tie Computer Science with business law or other politics, bail out and find another college. I have seen this in a few times in different states, and I am rather disgusted that they tied those focuses together.

Last thing, what jobs can you get with a computer science degree other than a programming job and geek squad?

Any white-collar computer field will be in your grasp, in short. Depending on your university, you'll be learning not only computer programming and some hardware aspects of a computer, but also networking and operating systems like: Linux, RedHat\Solaris (BURN IT, SEND IT TO HELL!!!), Mac, and some Windows thrown in -- though, this just depends on your universities standards with the Computer Science field (I forgot the standard that is in the United States).
During your freshmen year start thinking what area of profession you really want to be in; do you want to program pay-roll software (Fail-Mart), do you want to change the world with a useful piece of software (Valve's Steam), do you want to do gaming, do you want to optimize the TCP/IP suite or even make something better? It may take longer than your freshmen year to figure out, but you'll eventually find your calling.

I love programming and I heard that programming can be really fun as a hobby but as a job programming can be a nightmare.

Truly depends on what company you go into. If you're lucky, you'll find a stable and comfortable environment - as Zalewa has. In some other cases, it can be an ultimate hell - Microsoft.

Good luck!

[Ænima]

I've heard a lot of people say that working as a programmer is hell. Working 13 hours per day 7 days a week, dealing with asshole managers who have no idea about what they are talking about or what they want, and dead lines that get pushed sooner forcing you into crunch time. I wouldnt mind staying a few hours extra to finish up a program every once in a while but so far people on the internet make it seem like a 9-5 job just doesnt happen in the programming industry. I love programming and solving analytical problems by developing programs but I also have a life that doesnt involve being on a computer. Anyone have experience as a programmer they would like to tell me about?

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[Flaminglacier]

jwaffe not to put you on the spot or anything but why do you continue working there?

Also I live in Las Vegas NV and was planning on getting my first job at Konami Gaming Inc. Anyone know if this company is a decent company to work for? Also based on what they do (Develop the software and hardware for the gambling machines in Las Vegas) would you assume it would be a job with a 70+ hours of work input a week?

In python:

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Import ProgrammingCareer
Over_forty_hours_a_week = bool(false)
int job_input
  
  if job_input > 40:
     Over_forty_hours_a_week = true
      print "Fuck this shit, I have a family and a life"
  else:
      print "I enjoy a life where I get to sleep and watch my children grow up. Not a life where I wake up glued to a screen for 13 hours everyday"

Also my plan was to get my AAS in Software Engineering and to get a decent paying job (Around 50k-60k) so I could pay for my bachelors degree with virtually no debt. Should I just skip getting my associates at community college and work straight on my bachelors with student loans? The tuition for my Associates would be around $10,000 while the tution for me BS in CS would be around $100,000.

I guess my question is, is it hard to land a decent paying job with an associates in computer science straight out of college? Or should I just skip the step of getting a job to pay for my B.S. and go to a university full time for 4 years.

[Catastrophe]

If that's the same Konami that made Metal Gear Solid, then that's pretty sweet.

[Flaminglacier]

It is indeed the Konami gaming inc that made Silent Hill and Metal Gear, although, it's a different branch of the company that strictly makes cabs for casino's. In fact they just released new Dungeons and Dragons themed slots for casino's to use. Being born and raised in Las Vegas, I think this would be an interesting job to have.

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[Cruduxy]

If you enter computer science without anything beside programming in mind prepare for computer architecture and OS to give you a living hell during the later years in university. And of course having experience under your belt gives you advantage over others during job interviews.

[Flaminglacier]

I just realized from watching the video I embedded that Konami has it's laboratories at the university I am going too, UNLV :P

[ibm5155]

Well, I actually wanted to work to a gamming company, maybe making some engines heh. but, for that I would need to live outside my country '-'