27 Dec 2000 mrorganic   » (Journeyer)

Work Stuff:

Trying to implement a cleaner version of a module which $COWORKER wrote. At first I was going to fix the module he wrote, but it was such a mess I decided it would take less time to just rewrite the damned thing.

Here's some advice to companies out there who are unwilling to pay for experienced C++ coders and so try to "promote up" junior programmers (who generally have VB experience or no programming background at all): DON'T DO IT! I guarantee you that the money you lose in shitty code and missed deadlines will far outstrip what you save on salary costs. Of the people in my group, only three (including myself) have any C/C++ background whatsoever, and only two of us (including me) have actual work experience.

I can get angry at $COWORKER for writing shitty code (all the more because he's also lazy and does no testing), but ultimately the problem is a larger one. Companies need to have some sanity about how they staff projects.

Personal:

Just for kicks, I resurrected my old BeOS USENET newsreader project which I had abandoned long ago. Lots of the code made me wince, but I polished it up a bit and compiled it. And ye gods and little fishes, it actually worked! (Note to other BeOS users: this software is strictly for personal consumption right now. If and when I enhance it enough to meet the GNKSA guidelines, I'll release it under the GPL, but that's a long way off.)

I must admit: after the headaches I've had with GTK+/GNOME and FLTK, programming with the BeOS API is a real pleasure. (And I don't have to deal with those shitty X fonts! Woohoo!) People whose judgement I trust tell me that QT on Linux is the closest thing to the BeOS API I'm likely to come across (the 'moc' and signal/slot strangeness notwithstanding).

BeOS always seems to be on the verge of bankruptcy, but then they've been around for most of a decade, so I guess the danger is not really all that imminent. It's funny that most people still think of Be as a "start-up" -- they've been around for longer than companies like Red Hat and Caldera! I'm kind of bummed that they are having such a hard time finding a niche; I'd really like to see them succeed. (That's why I fork over my $60US every time a new version of the OS comes out -- every little bit helps!)

Finally, Linux will not run on my K6-III box -- it'll run for about a minute and then reboot spontaneously (and this is under both kernel 2.2.18 and 2.4.0-test12). BeOS not only runs just dandy but recognizes both the integrated video *and* audio chips.

To be honest, I'm running out of reasons to run Linux at all.

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