My programming is in full getting it done swing. Comments are being neglected, horrible things are being done with try {} catch {} blocks, and variable names are becoming less useful. Writing high quality code on a schedule is harder then I originally estimated. A lot of my scheduling problems are tied to my work environment. Well, the part of my work environment: my paycheck. Essentially, I don't get paid until I finish the application. And my paycheck is dependent on delivering a working program; not a maintainable one.
I guess it's the plight of most software developers. Debates about languages and closures and whatever the hell else is good for academia, but it really gets in the way of getting things done. I'm not an academic, but I believe in good code. It's a tradeoff. Do I spend a few extra minutes here commenting code? Do I write down my thought process and reasoning for a tricky bit of functionality when my power bill is going unpaid? What exactly is my motivation to write good code when my paycheck is the same? I certainly won't be maintaining this code; I'm out as of August 2007. It'll be a guaranteed revenue stream (to the tune of $3k/month) for my employer, not me.
Professional dedication can only go so far. As much as I hate it, I go to work developing enterprise applications and come home and dream about developing other applications. Not shrink wrap or games or anything, but just doing development work that's not my job. Yeh, I'm that much of a geek. Point is, I'm supposed to be living the life! I'm a professional developer now! My systems are going to be making an impact on the people who use them; I'm drawing a paycheck for making them awesome! External deadlines and milestone markers really dampen the whole programming experience. As does reality, but that's more philosophical then I'd like at 4:49AM.
Bottom line: my code quality is suffering. I've been developing for this company since March, but I've seen one (yes one) paycheck. There is a large amount of money outstanding. It feels like I'm working for a bootstrapped startup (something I swore I would never do) except I'm not doing anything new and exciting. I'm banging out data access objects and business rules for an insurance underwriter. Dreams of my enterprise career definitely included a steady paycheck, and this just isn't cutting it.
On the plus side, Gin and Tonic is still as tasty as ever.
Print | posted on Wednesday, May 30, 2007 12:58 AM