Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by EpicEng 2314 days ago
Wow. I don't have as prolific a tale as that, but I'm in the looking stage right now and the idea of cramming for a test I haven't taken in 12 years annoys the hell out of me.

I've done some pretty interesting things in biotech in my career, things that required learning about motion control, digital imaging, signal processing, and biology... but if I want a job as a web dev I apparently need to memorize how to implement every sorting algorithm... on a whiteboard... in ten minutes. The fact that I know which to use when is irrelevant. Bleh.
3 comments
Psychlist 2313 days ago
This is part of the reason why I've only consulted into big companies, and only briefly. It's not just that I am not that sort of person, it's that I don't like being around that sort of person.

Software engineering is also another field where there's no effective upper limit on difficulty. In other words, no matter how good you are you (should) always feel that you're barely capable of understanding what you're supposed to be doing, let alone doing it.

That's right from "make a single static web page" to "submit binary fix to close-source compiler" or whatever the high end of your particular field is (Win a technical argument with the C++ standards committee? Shave 0.001% off the load time of the google homepage? Discover a new way to monetise users?).

link
wuschel 2313 days ago
Hi EpicEng,

just out of curiosity to learn more about your project: Where could I contact you?

Cheers!

link
blaufast 2313 days ago
Having worked at cutting edge biotech,startups and FAANG I wholeheartedly defend the interview process, and believe you would too if you ever switched over for a while
link
tybit 2312 days ago
I got a job at a FAANG and still think the interviewing is absurd, and Im forced to work with worse people because of it.

No need to imply the OP doesn’t get it just because they’re on the outside of it.

link
RobRivera 2313 days ago
I think there's a certain breed of people who will pony up the time and resources to levelup for the interview, and the compliment. Ignoring the privilege of resource availability, i think its totally doable and worthwhile. I come from a blue collar family and I think my old man would love to hear I can pull off miraculous study habits for a month to take home the kind of paychecks offered for hitting a keyboard.

Granted, if the money were not there, I would not find it worthwhile. I would probably just focus on founding my own company.

link