|
Not at all, writing code only make up a relatively small portion of what engineering actually is. Writing code is a tool in the tool box. Engineering is about managing complexity, creating order, understanding what to build and when. It's so much more than lines of code. And in my experience, programmers who started later in life can pick up how to code pretty quickly, and they don't need to be amazing coders, because I've found them to be realllly good with all the other stuff. I've found them to be cautious, good at communicating, able to think about problems at an abstract level, very dutiful and see the importance of things like documentation and keeping boards up-to-date etc. When I was 21 and coding, I was rising the ranks as a coder pretty quickly, but I lacked the maturity to see the bigger picture, I neglected processes - and even dismissed them, I didn't think about things like reliability, I didn't really think about product fit or all the none code related things. I didn't even see them as my concern half the time. In fact I'd go as far as to say I was a bit of a liability at times. So, I've found older programmers introduce an air of calm, wisdom and diligence that, certainly I had absolutely none of as a precocious 21 year old programmer. In fact, I work with an intern who's a fair bit older than me (I'm in my early thirties), and I'm often amazed at the things he considers and mentions, things I hadn't given a second thought to, and they're not necessarily technical or code related things, they're the bigger picture things and ideas, that are just as vital as writing code. Oh, and he's gotten to be a good coder in a short space of time, too. I think older folks are more focussed and methodical learners generally. I spent most of my 20's trying to learn about 10 programming languages, badly. Rather than learning the few I actually needed to an intimate level. So in summary, I've found that older programmers have life skills and experience that help them get up to speed that perhaps younger programmers lack. And they also tend to be better and all the none-code but vital skills, which I certainly lacked when I was in my early 20's. I absolutely love to see a mix of ages in a team, because they bring different skill sets. |