“Careful. We don't want to learn from this.” - Calvin

Let me get some things out of the way - I did not expect this blog to get revived. Nor am I committing to keeping it alive henceforth. The strong need to vent a few thoughts is the sole motivation for this post. Now that this disclaimer is out of the way.. here's the lesson for today -

EXPERIENCE IS OVERRATED. There. I said it. I don't remember just how many times I've argued with people who considered "experience" the most valuable asset at a job. Looking back at those arguments, I realize I was somewhat naive to draw my conclusion without having any experience to show for myself. However, 3 years down the line, I (modestly) proclaim that I WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG. As least when it comes to the profession of developing software. If you are offended at this point, read on and maybe my explanation will make sense. And if it doesn't, that's too bad (do leave me a note why, though).

I don't have a problem with experience. But unlike many other people, I consider it an "add-on", rather than a primary skill. The only real technical skills required of a good software engineer are logic and basic programming aptitude. Everything else is a "nice-to-have". You know certain programming languages, good. You worked on "foo" framework or "bar" technology, better. But if you can't explain why O(n log n) is faster than O(n^2)... no technology can help you. Of late I've often heard an argument suggesting that experience compensates for ability. That, to me, is complete baloney.

Experience is actually a tricky "quality". I've come to realize that experience makes a smart person smarter; and a not-so-smart person, well, more not-so-smarter. Here's why - a smart developer knows that all his skills have an expiry date. The only way he/she can remain smart is by continuing to learn and get better. A person who doesn't understand this; however, will work under the false assumption that his experience enables him to do better work. I've seen people throw jargon, spin big tales of past projects, rattle names of 100 technologies that hardly even matter anymore (COBOL, anyone?)... but choke at the slightest hint of doing something tangible. You know you're in the company of such a "project lead", when he shows you an Object Oriented software designed entirely with a bunch of sequence diagrams (seriously, I can't make up something like that!).

I've worked with some exceptionally smart experienced people. I can guarantee that they were always good at what they did, and just kept getting better as they mastered more skills. The underlying assumption, though, is that they were always above a certain threshold of aptitude. Which is why I think the criteria for judging a software engineer should not include experience.

So if you're planning to tell someone tomorrow how good you are because of your experience, think again. Tell them, instead, your brightest idea... your solution to the hardest problem. I know that's what will get my attention!

What better way to put it...

... than in a classic C&H.

Copyright Bill Waterson

Issued in public interest

Please read this if you are planning to visit the United States. Hell, read this anyway. And remember it.

1. A hamburger does NOT contain ham. It contains beef. The origins were in Hamburg, Germany, hence the name. For all those who are going "How-did-I-just-find-out-I-ate-beef"...sorry, too bad. Swallow it! And convince yourself.
   
2. A cheeseburger is NOT two buns with cheese in the middle. It is a hamburger (refer pt. 1) with extra cheese. Now repeat that after me.. "A cheeseburger is..."

Whew.. I really needed to get that off my head.

I'm back!

...going out on a floodlit football field on a chilly, windy evening that makes your ears go red
...making tackles, not particularly concerned of getting hit on an occasion or two
...getting abused in Spanish by a bunch of complete strangers
...scoring 3 goals in a 3-0 victory

Now that's what I've been missing out on, for a while!

Don't bother

Why are there more questions than answers?

Maybe because this one hasn't been answered.

Or has it?

Bits n pieces

This has been very refreshing. After a really long time, some cricket news that has me interested.

And this is very depressing. I really had expected that it had, if nothing else, caught some more attention.

Courtesy: Lunch break.

Dollar going down?!

When you are moving between worlds, there is so much to write about. I could go on and on with comparisons, lessons learnt, opinions, inhibitions, revelations and rants... but I think the following story is what I found most amusing during my past few days.

This friend of mine is planning to go to the US for her higher studies. Naturally, she was looking for some loose dollars to carry for odd expenses. Her father found these at a most unexpected source: a woman called "bhangarwaali" (one who picks up odd items from households and sells them in the flea market).
As it turns out, some wisecrack on Prabhat road tipped her $4. She was more than happy when my friend's dad paid her Rs 160 in exchange of some bills she didn't even recognize! So much for 'foreign exchange'.

I'm loving it!