Customer Reviews

The Career Programmer: Guerilla Tactics for an Imperfect World

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If you are a programmer who is constantly persuing self-improvement of your software development skills, but is frustrated by your social development environment (i.e. Management), this book is for you. You care enough about yourself to try and fix your troubled environment. After you finish this book, I suggest giving Pete McBreen's <i>Software Craftsmanship</i> a read, and follow that with Alistair Cockburn's <i>Agile Software Development</i>. Duncan's book shows software development as a battleground of politics and ego-tanks-Duncan suggests ways to survive that crazy mess. If you actually want to change the way you develop software, McBreen and Cockburn show you the door.

I finally finished the Career Programmer after putting it down so many months ago because...I found it...depressing. Why? I lived that crazy mess. However, I have a hard time pinning down who his intended audience is--the Sr. Programmer, the middling programmer, the junior programmer? He certainly addresses all of these, sometimes from paragraph to paragraph. I suppose that he's writing to them all, or more appropriately-to the program manager that's been promoted from Sr. Engineer. I guess this because he talks about accurately tracking your activities (a PSP tactic), Managing your Team, and Putting together your Testing Team. This is obviously a mix of topics that's going to apply to a project manager.

Duncan repeatedly puts the onus on the reader to be responsible for these activities because no one else, and certainly not your management will do these things for you. (Depressing.) He compliments this advice with more survivalist wisdom on politics: don't stick your head too high and get fired. Don't lay too low and ignore the politics game and get fired for becoming redundant. Make sure to kiss up and make sure to praise management but suggest ideas on how their protect could be "better" with ideas from the other corner of your mouth at the same time.

This endless list of survival tactics is guidebook material for beginning programmers, but like I said, if he's writing to project managers, it behoves the project manager (or Sr. Programmer) to teach their Jr. programmers these tactics. It would be a very intimidating book to read for the entry level programmer. However, entry level programmers, in my experience, don't read much (they Know How To Program: bring it on!) and it's the team lead programmers who by discovering failure, start reading these books. Thus, this book is yet another depressing account of Thinks You Should Have Known.

Duncan, in his wisdom, points out something that many a programmer has oft reflected on: career path. He doesn't talk about this to much point, but his section on it says: have a thought about what kind of developer you want to be before you jump into the industry and let it mold you into something you regret. How many of us feel molded even now? Too many. I reflect on how a doctor or a lawyer could easily make the same kind of mistake--let their industry whisk them along and wake up to find themselves as a profession in a field they failed to choose.

However, this book is saturated with irony: almost all pointed advice Duncan gives is to subvert the system. Sneak in your testing staff. Sneak in your design time. Lie about what you're doing to give your self time to do things management is too ignorant to approve of. Duncan writes: life is too short to work for clowns, but if you have to pull these stunts to build a development team, to what degree of clown do you stop working for? People concerned about the reality of the software industry should pay attention to the reality presented in Duncan's book.

I think that many of the topics that Duncan raises in his book are artifacts of Scientific Management and Software Engineering. The environments that Duncan describes - offices full of idiotic ego-battles where people talk about producing software - would not exist were Pete McBreen's vision of software development the existing reality (a reality where people cared about getting the work done as it reflects their reputation).

I also find it interesting to note that much of what Duncan writes has been written by Steve McConnell in <i>Rapid Development</i> and <i>Software Project Survival Guide</i>. However, McConnell and Duncan describe something much closer to the Software Engineering environment than what, in my experience, is actually the reallity for smaller application development projects. I had echoed the ideas McConnell promoted for lack of any better writing on software development. However, after reading McBreen and Cockburn's respective works, my views on how to develop applications have radically changed towards the Craftsman approach. McConnell, in <i>After the Goldrush</i> provides many good arguments for the Licensing of Software Engineers, McBreen compliments McConnell's tack that such licensing efforts-are only rarely applicable.

From the very first chapter, I found myself nodding my head in agreement and chuckling about the inane situations Chris has encountered in Corporate America. Although he and I come from different worlds (Chris from software development and me from marketing/sales) his commentaries on the pitfalls, obstacles, and twisted logic of how Corporate America works is insightful and offers valuable tips on how to navigate potentially damaging confrontations.
This is a humorous, down-to-earth, practical guide that can be used by anyone (technical or non-technical) in coping with some truly wierd situations that arise. "The Career Programmer" is a quick read and definately deserves a second reading. If the truth be told, I sped through my first sitting with the book because I wanted to find out what happened to the chihuahua. Well done.

...

It's actually quite a depressing read in many ways as it quickly disposes of all the illusions many of us have about our chosen field of work, but it always does so in an amusing and well writen way.

And more importantly it gives solid advise about what to do about it. How to make the company work more for you rather than against you. But always in a professional way, and still in the interests of the company.

It's particularly good as an antidote against all those methodologies which sound great on paper but don't stand a chance of being implemented in most companies.

I've seen plenty of books about how to succeed in management, and sales, and marketing, but never one about how to succeed as a programmer - in the sense of making your life better and more productive, rather than just the technical aspects.

I highly recommend this book.

...I really liked the book. I have to disagree with some of the negative reviewers. If they don't think that a coders life in the majority of corporate America is just as this book details, then they haven't worked where I've worked. The author's writing style is humorous, and the book is an easy read.

The author comes across like that guy some of us have met, who knows how things REALLY work. You know - the one that helps you avoid failure, and can give you pragmatic advice. What some people find cynical, I call realism.

This book should be required reading for any new developer right out of college, especially if they're going to work in a Fortune 1000 company. Make that any company with more than 50 people. Dilbert IS reality.

I can see that people looking for a typical programming book might be disappointed. It's certainly not that. It's certainly not an ivory tower software development process book. If you're looking for something that might have come from Grady Booch, you'll be disappointed. What it is, IMHO, is a guide to dealing with the Dilbertisms that a LOT of us face in the corporate world. If you don't face those, and think your management has a clue, then this might not be the book for you. If your company is ISO 9K certified, you probably don't need it.

If however, you find yourself continually frustrated about trying to work effectively with people who just don't understand the software development process, and don't want to, then there's some good practical advice in this book for you.

This book isn't a normal technical book; it even isn't a technical book at all, but a non-technical book for programmers and a good one in my humble opinion.
This book isn't also a great literature prose, nothing of this actually. This book is direct, uses to the maximum the conversational style and an enjoyable and fun digestible prose, so isn't dry and boring to read.
Check the table of contents to see what I mean ;-)
This isn't a book that focuses on state of the art UML designs and patterns , nothing on these matters , actually.
This book talks about human beings , a specific kind of human being, nevertheless ;-)
This book describes the state of affairs not only on Corporate America where the author work, but it also applies to every single country that has a software house or a programming department.
This book talks about survival and fighting for your destiny, the aim: to survive, to be in control of your destiny and to have fun programming.
The title says it all: Guerilla Tactics for an Imperfect World, and in this light, the book accomplishes his desired feat: helping us with background, techniques, new ways of thinking, attaining realistic deadlines, having a life, this and more the friendly author talks about.
Although I have some minor programming experience due to my 4 years on this programming business, I think I passed all the book, shaking my head in accordance with the author's descriptions of real work situations, insane managers and insane corporate politics that I already passed (and I'm still passing it...) in a similar manner. Even now that I'm more experienced, the author have some really good ideas to employ on my daily work, that I'm sure I'll adapt for my personal use !
Summing up, the book is a great tool of preparation for a novice programmer, a good and refreshing read for the seasoned programmer and definitely the book have some good techniques to be used in this programming business.
Another great plus is the fact that the author is a nice, approchable and friendly fellow author/programmer if you want discuss any topic with him.

Being the sheltered geek that I am as I started my first project as project manager thinking that I was about to create the greatest masterpiece of my career, I was totally blind-sided by the agendas of management. I was heads-down creating and oblivious to the politics going on around me.

This book is a heads-up. There are some techniques here, but mostly tells of situations and people to watch out for. Forewarned is forearmed.

As developers, we often go with the corporate flow and take for granted all the sensible techniques we learnt as students. This book will make you rethink and remember all the crazy comments made by our managers.

Similar to the way the Dilbert books mocked corporate culture and behavior, this book provides the useful tips to improve our surrounding environment.

The first few chapters give scenarios for popular misconceptions such as why a programmer will not code all day, illogical decisions made by executives, vague requirements and seeing yourself as an enemy. After you read about the story about the networking solution using floppy disks, we are sure you will be able to relate it to your own experiences. Many of the answers are based on playing corporate politics and soft non-technical skills.

The book covers the author's personal experiences as he talks through the various issues. This book is compulsory reading for any new programmer and a necessary wake up call for professional developers.

Software has a reputation for being difficult to build, rarely working properly, and many abandoned projects. Yet software engineers have techniques for producing reliable, high quality software that does what it says on the tin, every time. So why the difference?

Most commercial software development environments are insane. The average `Suit' controls the money, controls the purse strings, and uses that power to prevent engineers getting the job done. Why? And what can you do about it? Duncan tells you.

I've built software in many commercial environments, and I can attest that the insanities described in this book are real and common. I've long since followed the tactic of charging by the hour, so if the suits are stupid enough to wreck software development, and they usually are, then at least some of the financial consequences end up in my pocket. Furthermore, all I allow myself to care about is doing quality work. I dare not care about the overall project, because these idiots habitually prevent it being achieved. If I cared, I'd get depressed.

But what if you're one of these guys who does care? What if you're stuck where you are, and you can see the idiots' usual stupidity will force you to work insane hours in a few months time? Grab this book. Duncan's been there, done that, sorted it out, written it down. He describes juicily devious tactics and strategies needed for you to keep your home life, and get results.

But, as Duncan shows, the Suits are not actually being stupid. Yes, they are being ignorant of your world, but you don't understand their world. They've got the power, the money, they pay your wages, so you'll have to manipulate them on their term to get your work done. Well, alright, they are being stupid, but they've got the power, life's a bitch, deal with it, here's how.

I spent a lot of my youth playing big-P politics, where I learnt to detest political games for their own sake. I developed small-p political skills, now put away in a mental box marked "for emergencies only". Well, I peaked in the box while reading this book, and I believe the trickery Duncan describes will work. But the irony is he advocates the same tricks the Suits use, so in the end you'll go much of the way to becoming one of them. Is a home life worth that? Of course it is!

You know another interesting thing about this book? There's real life in here. If you're thinking literature, if you want a real environment where people care, need each other, but haven't a clue, here it is. If you want to work out what your characters will do, what drives them, how they get results, here it is. If you want motivation for dastardly deeds (which Duncan doesn't mention, let alone advocate, apart from the chihuahuas), here it most certainly is!

You know, companies that do things properly get results. Companies that don't, they just screw up. If you make yourself aware, and do something about it, you can turn the failure round, despite the best efforts of the idiots with power. People up top notice. Now whether they'll fire you or promote you, that's another issue, and Duncan deals with it. But if they fire you, they're a bunch of tossers, they don't deserve you. If they fire people for success, they're going to fail, and you'll be somewhere else when they do.

Not every commercial software environment is stupid. I've worked in companies that understand how software is actually built. These are the companies that produce the products people use every day. They are successful. If you're very, very lucky, you'll work in such companies too. But if you don't, and you won't, and if you care, buy this book.

This book is well-written, sparkled with Duncan's humour. His prose is enjoyable and carries you along well. He's found a good balance between getting facts and ideas across, and keeping you entertained.

If you're a software engineer, and you want a life, buy this book.

...This book has helped me to re-evaluate my attitude and desires for my career and has given me the encouragement and ammunition needed to survive the battlefield of development. If you develop or analyze commercial or even in-house solutions and struggle to get to grips with all the corporate red tape and downright insanity this book is for you. This book is a MUST BUY for anyone who wants to be the best at what they do in the world of IT. No BS here just good wholesome truthful survival tacticts from someone who knows what the hell they are talking about.

Being a good coder has a lot to do with activities other than writing code. Don't get me wrong, I love learning about and experimenting with new products and technologies and my idea of the perfect day involves coffee, headphones, my code editor, and a good juicy coding challenge. In fact, sometimes I think it's the programming that's the easy part of this job. It's all the non-coding stuff that is so hard to master. This is what The Career Programmer: Guerilla Tactics for an Imperfect World, Second Edition is all about. This book is about improving every aspect of your programming job except the coding itself (actually, it might do that too.) The topics in this book are the things we tend not to talk about because we're always focused on learning about the next acronym.

Are you one of the many programmers out there who do it for fun? Maybe you're just considering getting into programming? Maybe you're getting tired of corporate life and considering options. This book will help you consider what you're doing and quite possibly cause you to make some positive changes in your career. Whatever your situation, why not make the most of it?

While I liked this book very much, I do think Duncan painted an overly pessimistic picture of the corporate world at times. That said, all his points were very valid, even those that were a bit over the top.

Check out the sample chapter on the Apress site to get a feel for the author's writing style. Just to give you a flavor for the book, here are a few of my favorite section/chapter titles.
- So You Thought You'd Just Be Coding All Day, Eh?
- Why People Run Businesses and Pay Programmers
- Taking Control of Your Time
- Preventing Arbitrary Deadlines
- Getting Your Requirements Etched in Stone
- Preparations for Effective Information Gathering
- The Myth of the Eight-Hour Day
- Controlling Your Destiny

Duncan tells it like it is (or, at least, how it can be at times.) His writing style is enjoyable and easy to read. And, there are more than a few Chihuahua jokes. One can never have too many of those... Highly recommended reading!