[eshvk]

> 1) The best way I know of is if you're referred to a company by someone you know and can trust enough to tell you about the warts beforehand.

Another issue of course, is that the other person's baseline estimate might be screwed up. For example, a friend of mine who worked in the east coast where you had to wear a tie to work every day for a code job, finds the idea of dressing up in whatever he pleases at his startup amazing. That colors the perspective of how he looks at things.

> 2) Failing #1, if you find a company you're interested in and who's interested in you, ask them for a contract-to-hire position with a 3-6 month or so contract. It's a great way to really get to know the culture without a huge commitment. They'll do it if they want you, but if they balk you should be able to convince them it's in their best interest as well. Just don't do anything drastic like relocating until you're full-time.

This is probably the best way to do it. The problem then of course is what if things don't go well? One has a resume with a collection of three to six month long positions which makes HR people nervous. I guess one could essentially mark all that as time spent "consulting" but I don't know how that would fly with prospective employees.