Re: C++ Passion = Madness
But surely boost is still C++. WxWidgets and QT are still C++.
I guess you're talking about C++ as meaning just the language and the
standard libraries? I thought by C++ you mean everything coded in C++ -
and you really can't talk about professional C++ development without
being able to use C++ to manipulate a relational database, concurrent
programming and GUI applications.
Then, many of them require good academic results, and or
specific experience, although I've never been convinced that is any
guarantee of a good C++ developer, or the code they've developed or
develop be easy to maintain or develop. As I don't meet the previous 2
criteria, getting an opportunity to use any C++ skills I may have is not
easy. So those C++ skills have hardly flattered my career development.
Sorry to hear that, but all things being equal I still stand by my
position - C++ is just a safer bet.
In my experience, the school grades are only required when there's no
prior experience to speak of. You're right that previous experience does
not guarantee the candidate will meet a high standard as a C++
programmer, but you should take into account that prior experience is
not only something an employer looks for to show that you've mastered a
programming language, but something that shows them you can "play ball",
be a "team player", got "what it takes", and so on (insert HR cliche
here). And prior experience doesn't only mean experience with C++ -
there's a bunch of tools you're supposed to be comfortable with, CVS,
Subversion, Vim, (X)Emacs, GCC, GDB, Visual Studio, Bugzilla, etc. Not
to mention workplace dynamics - can you fit into an Agile team, do you
know what Scrum means, etc. There are also good habits that tend to form
when working with a team rather than alone - developing unit tests as
you write your code, automated functional testing, etc.
My advice to you is to get your feet wet with a serious open source
project. This will give you some visibility, and will create some
tangible experience that you can put on a CV.
The delivery logistics software I worked on in the past was considered
to be difficult and complex, and i was employed based on my C++ test
results. Now I'm sure many of the other candidates had more C++ work
experience than I. Then for a year I was supporting a graduate with C++
difficulties on an almost daily basis. If that isn't a test of ones C++
skill and understanding, what is?
As for using other tools, as a Linux user who maintains a Laptop and a
standard PC I've learnt to use a variety of tools, and you mention a few
of them. Even so, I sometimes think employers expect folks to have an
expert knowledge of all the libraries and tools they use, without
looking for evidence of adaptability and initiative. This is clearly
impractical if the need for a developer is really urgent, but if they're
on a fishing exercise it makes sense. Lastly, if giving up your free
time, social and family life is expected as often appears to be the case
then I'm not interested. On the last point I'm of the opinion that most
folks have ~4 hours of creative and productive ideas a day, and past
about 7 hours they start making too many mistakes to make that extra
time all that valuable.
JB
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