The Importance of Developers' Social Circles

     I just received a phone call this evening from Philip F., a previous quasi-co-worker (an employee at a software shop for whom I used to contract) and we took some time to catch up on how things have been in both of our personal/professional worlds.  I took the time to explain that I was no longer working as an employee for a New Jersey based internet hosting provider, and he informed me that he was now teaching some of the same classes on web based coder that he himself had just completed as a student.  Just for the record, he's been coding for almost two decades, it was more of a catchup on certain technologies with which he didn't focus on professionally.

     This eventually led into the topic of getting plans together for grabbing dinner together, as our previous plans to do so were disrupted at the last minute and we'd not had the opportunity to reschedule.  We're going to do so this time and it made me think of how important it is for developer/engineers and architects to spend time face to face, even over something as ubiquitous as dinner.   We need this kind of camaraderie as a means of acquiring new information that while not directly affecting each of us in the same manner, it does provide us expanded horizons.  

     Getting together over some nice Indian, Thai or Moroccan food while chatting away aimless on topics as innocuous petty work incidents to full blown coding feats is a means by which we as a community of software professionals bond.  It is this circle of connections which proves to be the most rewarding in terms of contacts for future work, but more so importantly, for our own social well being, knowing that others share some of the same pains prevalent in the coding environment through which we endure to produce wonderful products.  

     This reminds me of many, *many* years back when from 1987 through 1996 I owned and operated an electronic bulletin board system (BBS) called Somerton Telecomm International BBS (also known as Somerton Telecomm as well as Somerton BBS).  We had 6,000+ verified users in 39 countries and 42 US states, 12 phone lines and a very active user base, but ultimately it was the weekly dining get-togethers at 01:00 in the morning at locale eating establishments (the great Northeastern United States collections of diners as it were) to munch on food whilst blabbering away, in person to others on various topics of interest to all those involved.  We would spend hours, sometimes longer just go off verbally on anything and everything online related or otherwise.  

     It is exactly this kind of face to face interaction that helps to grown the world view of a given coder, as well as assist in the act of interacting with others in a more relaxed environment.  So I suggest to everyone out there, contact previous coders, architects and/or engineers with whom you've worked and arrange to get together over a glass of wine, or a formal meal, and simply enjoy the company of a peer with whom you can speak openly, about so many varied topics.  I'm sure that there are more than a few topics via which you can converse happily. 

     Don't wait, take action today, your mental stability will thank you.

Future Aspirations.

I recently had dinner with a previous pseudo-co-worker from my previous contract to catch up on things since parting ways.  I say "pseudo-co-worker" because ultimately when one is a contractor, he/she has no co-workers with only the exception of other contractors on the same project for which they were contracted.  He works for a software production firm primarily in Java, and that little tidbit of information started me thinking.  What I have wanted for all of these years in the profession was to work for a software house.  

I know that some of the open source crowd are going to say "why not contribute to new and/or existing open source project?" to which I simply point out that is isn't the same.  I have written and distributed code under both the artistic license as well as the BSD license, but ultimately it isn't solely about the code, it is about the environment.  Right now, I work in an environment in which there is really one person with whom I can speak and joke regarding code and geekdom in general, and I enjoy that.  I do know however, that much like my previous work associate, I want the whole environment, surrounded by other coders of varying capabilities and disciplines.  

I'm sure some might imply that I have a sort of fantasy view of these environments, but I beg to differ based upon the opinions of others that I know personally.  There is a certain camaraderie in highly skilled engineering/creative homogeneous work place environments which just isn't found elsewhere.  If anyone reading this has ever had the opportunity to read any blogs from the original coding group at Netscape or Apple, you'll know full well as to what I'm referring.

I know full well that there are high stress time periods at those companies and that more so those environments are more conducive to non-family-life encumbered employees, but there are definitely exceptions as such.  

Either way, back to my friend.  I think he pointed out something to me that I feel would me help with my, dare I say, professional environmental depression, that being -- attending programming/tech conferences.  Back in 2000, I attended Linux World in New York at the Jacob Javits Center, and then again in 2001.  It was a blast, by and far.  I do have to say that 2000 was a much better event than 2001 not only because of the IBM sponsored rave, BattleBots, and free (as-in "beer") bar, but because of the people there.  It seemed to go quite a bit more corporate in one single year.  I met many interesting people during those conventions, and even received several job offerings as well, though I didn't take any, as much as I should've since a few were at software houses.   Either way, I've lost my focus of this post, but I can say that I've made it a personal resolution to start heading to more developer related cons, now the questions are, which ones?  PyCon?  JavaOne?  LUG Radio Live (US or UK)?   I guess time will tell.