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Are Google software engineers really doing…

Are Google software engineers really doing…

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I’ve been developing SW at google for 15 years now, though mostly not with the job title of “software engineer” but rather as a senior tech manager (“uber tech lead”, was the monicker for that) or as a senior-staff “technical solutions engineer” (whatever that may mean: it changes by the group/team/area, and by the year). I would say that maybe 1/10th of my coding time over these 15 years was “extraordinary” — inventing and deploying stuff such as provably-auditable data access, getting 10x the performance of an existing system by drastically different architectures, fully automating platform-migration tasks which had taken 100s of hours of toil from highly skilled pros down to single-digit ... »

The Coders Programming Themselves Out of a Job

The Coders Programming Themselves Out of a Job

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In 2016, an anonymous confession appeared on Reddit: “From around six years ago up until now, I have done nothing at work.” As far as office confessions go, that might seem pretty tepid. But this coder, posting as FiletOFish1066, said he worked for a well-known tech company, and he really meant nothing. He wrote that within eight months of arriving on the quality-assurance job, he had fully automated his entire workload. “I am not joking. For 40 hours each week, I go to work, play League of Legends in my office, browse Reddit, and do whatever I feel like. In the past six years, I have maybe done 50 hours of real work.” When his bosses realized that he’d worked less in half a d... »

The supply chain of software

The supply chain of software

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Thirty years ago, the number of software companies in the world was small—think Microsoft, SAP, and Oracle—and they wrote every piece of software that comprised their products. There was no supply chain for building software. However, as companies began to evolve, multiply, and compete, the industry evolved along with it. And every mature industry has a supply chain. Consider the industries that produce physical goods. Being from Detroit, my mind jumps to the auto industry. Automobile manufacturers don’t build every piece of a car themselves. They buy steel from a steel company, seats from a seat company, speedometers from a speedometer company. All those Camrys and F-150 pick... »

Trading time for money

Trading time for money

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According to conventional wisdom, if you earn 31€/hour, and a task costs less than that to outsource, then you should always pay someone else to do it. For example, if your cleaning person charges 15€/hour, you save 16€ for every hour you spend at work instead of cleaning your house. I’ve encountered this advice quite often, particularly among the wealthier, productivity porn-loving, 4-Hour Work Week-thumping entrepreneur crowd. I don’t think that advice is quite right. Your time is worth less than you think There is a hefty tax on converting time to money. In Germany, if you earned the average income (42 421€ per year)1, you’d lose roughly a quarter of it to income ta... »

Don’t End The Week With Nothing

Don’t End The Week With Nothing

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Hiya guys! Patrick (patio11) here. You’re getting this email from me because you asked for my occasional thoughts on making and selling software. Usually I concentrate more on the needs of established software businesses, but recently I’ve been asked for some advice by people who are still in the trenches working at a traditional day job. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with day jobs. Most people have them. They’re an honest living. Some people really enjoy the particular one that they have. If your day job is right for you, that is wonderful and I will not second-guess your decision. Many people nurse dreams of entrepreneurship because their day job is not quite rig... »