It is important to create things beyond that what is expected. You should go above and beyond the specifications of the application and create something that will wow the product owner.

I think it’s interesting to look at software development as craftsmanship and what you create as art. I do think that programming is a form of art because you have to use your creativity to make anything that you produce. Being artistic is a good way to look at creating an application, especially one with a user interface because it is what people will be looking at whenever they interact with the software. You want something to look beautiful and appealing just like a piece of artwork. In my opinion, someone would be more likely to use attractive-looking software than one that is unappealing to the eyes. It’s also important to make something that’s easy to navigate because that enhances the user experience.

I typically try to go above and beyond in the project that I’m working on. It is good for personal growth and reflects well on my portfolio. It is nice to be able to show a future client past work and be proud of the artistic design element of what I created. I prefer working on the backend, but I do enjoy creating a nice UI that users enjoy interacting with.

I think it is important to put extra time and effort into the products that you are creating for your clients. However, I think it’s important to not get lost in the details of creating something more than they asked for. Sometimes it’s possible to add features and create things that the client might not want and then you are forced to remove them. There are other times where you might put in extra work, and you were taking time away from yourself for other projects that need attention. Even though it’s good to have just to have the learning experience, I think it’s also important to make sure that projects for clients, that you put in extra effort into, should get some form of acknowledgment.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Jared's Development Blog by Jared Moore and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

For this week’s other blog post, I have decided to look at the chapter “Confront your ignorance”. This is somewhat a continuation of the previous chapter “Expose your ignorance”. The idea of this chapter is that you, a software developer, have found gaps in your skillset, gaps that are relevant to your daily work. These gaps include tools and techniques that you need to learn. However, you don’t know where to begin and it is already expected that you know these things. Unlike “exposing your ignorance”, the solution here is to not start asking questions to try and close this gap. The idea of this chapter is to divide and conquer what you need to learn by picking one skill, tool, or technique and activity fill those gaps. However, like the other chapter, can you actively close this gap by finding a mentor in the workplace who will teach you this. According to Dave H. Hoover & Adewale Oshineye, the authors of the book, they say on this,

“This pattern is closely tied to Expose Your Ignorance, but implementing it is less of a challenge to your pride because it can be done in private, without anyone else ever finding out the things you did not know. However, as an apprentice with aspirations to mastery, you need to be willing to Expose Your Ignorance as well. Using this pattern in isolation (that is, confronting your ignorance without exposing it) runs the risk of encouraging a culture where failure and learning are unacceptable because everybody does their learning in secret.” (Dave H. Hoover & Adewale Oshineye Pg. 29)

After reading this chapter, it has changed slightly the way I will think in a work environment. I liked how this chapter coupled ideas from the previous chapter giving me a more deeper understanding about learning and growing in the workplace. I though it was cool how ideas were continued in this chapter with a different meaning. Now when presented with the issue of my own ignorance, I know now the way to think if this should be something I’m asking question about or learning on my own.

From the blog CS@worcester – Michale Friedrich by mikefriedrich1 and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

In approximately 6 weeks, I will become a new graduate student, and as I have not yet found an entry position for any company, it seems like I have no choice but to take any opportunity which comes first. Looking for a company makes me doubt that I am not good enough to qualify for any position and the waiting period is a bit frustrating and annoying.

An infamous reason that I heard from my friends is because I needed employers to sponsor me working authorization due to my international status. I was told that if employers see that option is on, the candidate’s document will immediately be excluded. Somewhat unfair but I will have a chance to verify it myself after earning myself working authorization and now I can be treated fairly by the applicant tracking system.

Besides, I think I made some mistakes in creating my resume initially that I did not include enough ability to show I am a good fit for the position. It is understandable that companies will not risk hiring someone who may not be able to directly contribute to the team’s workloads, even automate some simple manual tasks. Since my resume back then was poorly written, I failed to advertise myself to get the hiring manager’s intention.

Luckily, my action over the problem was kind of similar to what I read from the book, by collecting CVs from different people from the Internet and by hearing some tips and tricks from my friends on how to make my CVs better, I was able to rewrite my resume and checked it with different trusted ATS sites. Furthermore, my understanding on the subject improved considerably since then, so I can add more properties to the CVs. Comparing my initial CVs with my current one, it seems like I am now ready to reapply for every suitable position.

In conclusion, it could be tough getting to my first job, but as I started to be hired, it will be easier by then. Besides, I learned that I should put more preparation in my CVs, make a section to list every concrete skill that I have and related to the specified projects in the CVs.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Vien's Blog by Vien Hua and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

For this week’s blog post, I have decided to look at the apprenticeship pattern “Unleash your Enthusiasm”. 11this chapter is all about you as a programmer being very excited about the craft of software development. However, you find that you are holding back and being more enthusiastic about the work your colleagues are doing. Fear not, as your enthusiasm and love for the craft does not go unnoticed. Because of your inexperience, it brings some unique attributes to the team, including that infectious enthusiasm and an unfettered imagination. According to Dave H. Hoover & Adewale Oshineye, the authors of the book, they say on this,

“In any group setting, there is a tendency to conform to the norm, particularly for newcomers. Most teams are not hyper-passionate or overly enthusiastic about technology. Predictably, they are focused on delivering the next project or improving on the aspects of the development life cycle that are causing them pain. Therefore, enthusiastic apprentices can often succumb to the urge to fly under the radar. They either repress their enthusiasm altogether or allow it to manifest only outside of their day jobs.” (Dave H. Hoover, Adewale Oshineye Pg. 22).

Essentially because of you being a newcomer you tend to try and acclimate to the rest of the group and start to lose that newcomer enthusiasm and begin to try and become unnoticed. The yare risks however that come from unleashing your enthusiasm. One of these risks are that if the morale is low or the team is not welcoming, you will likely get some eye rolling from your enthusiasm.  Another risk that could come from unleashing your enthusiasm is depending on the team, they may not enjoy that you are exposing your ignorance and where your knowledge stands.

From reading this chapter I found it to be an interesting take on when you begin working in a job setting with a new team. I liked that in the chapter it talks about both the positives and negatives of unleashing your enthusiasm. Although this chapter did not really change the way that I think about programming and my enthusiasm when I would get a new job. Knowing who I am as a person and my personality, I am not one to “unleash” my enthusiasm on a new group of individuals, so I don’t see this chapter as being helpful in that sense. However, if I were to train a newcomer and they brought this enthusiasm to the table, I now know what they could bring to the table, and I will not disregard it now.

From the blog CS@worcester – Michale Friedrich by mikefriedrich1 and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

There are many critical systems that have no room for failures, such as banking software or a hospital’s patient management system. It is difficult to experiment with new features or try a new approach when a piece of software is heavily relied upon. In order to experiment with new things, you need to have a test environment where you can try out features. If these features turn out to be harmful or cause problems down the line, they will not affect the current user version of the software. Creating a playground environment allows you to not worry about breaking changes or failures cousin headaches for program users and other developers. Software that is a breakable toy means it is that something can be played with, broken, and replaced without impacting anyone else. It is a way to learn, test new workflows, and ideas.

It is hard to clone and play around with code when there is a complex system that requires a database, client, server, and other resources for its operation. Because of the work and resources to create a clone of an existing system, I would not have created a second replica of the system in the past. However, this pattern makes a strong enough argument for me to put in the effort to make a breakable system for testing. I thought it was interesting a breakable toy can also be a personal project where you are the only one who uses it. I thought of this almost like a programmer’s diary where you program your ideas in private and you are the only one who sees them.

I currently program with a pattern similar to breakable toys but on a smaller scale. When I want to add a new feature into a codebase, I make a testing branch where I can execute that idea. In my ‘toy’ branches, I do not have any intention of merging the code into the main branch, I only use it to play around with an idea to see how it might be executed. I do not disagree with any aspect of this pattern, although it is good to also be comfortable working in an environment where you have to be careful about the programming you do could have a major effect.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Jared's Development Blog by Jared Moore and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.

Chapter Two’s is themed around growing your knowledge. The pattern “Confront Your Ignorance” follows this theme and focuses on working with projects that are outside of your expertise. When you feel as if each project you are working on is like the previous one, it means you are applying your existing knowledge. There is truly little chance to grow as a developer when you work strictly within the areas you are knowledgeable about. The ideal scenario is one where you are working outside of your area of expertise to maximize the amount of new experience you engage with.

In the future, I will be more willing to work on projects where I dive into a topic that I do not fully understand. I also feel that the action for this pattern, to map your projects in a timeline, is a useful way to track your personal development over time. A timeline is a terrific way to see if your learning has stagnated and it is time to jump into something new. This method is also a great way to see where you want to take your professional career and give you an opportunity to map into the future.

I found it interesting how large of a risk the author suggests taking regarding a project outside of your knowledge. It is suggested to work on projects where the possibility of failure to complete them is high. In a private setting, I would gladly challenge myself by deep-diving into a project that I do not feel confident I can complete. In a professional setting, I personally am a bit too risk-averse to immediately want to take on a task where the chance of failure is greater than my chance of success. However, I appreciate that it is a gamble where if I do succeed it will boost my portfolio and whether I succeed or fail I will walk away with more knowledge than I started with. I believe it is human nature to be frightened of failure. This pattern is a great reminder that the journey that led to failure was along the way a great learning experience and the following attempt will be a success based on what you had learned.

From the blog CS@Worcester – Jared's Development Blog by Jared Moore and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.