mgrennan

If I could up vote this 100 times I would. I love open source. But 40 years in computing (hardware to apps) has left me with questions. Like, Why could I write an entire Point of Sale system in 64K in 1987 (Apple - The Store Manager) and now you couldn't do it in 64G.

I can't believe this is a thing. I showed this to my grade school teacher and she told me I was doing it WRONG. I just new it worked so I kept using it.

After 40+ years as in electronic, software developer, OS and App, Networking, SysAdmin, DBA and DevOps I see it all as a multi discipline. Knowledge in Electronics, CPU design, Compiler development, OS design, communications, Business management and user interfaces all relate and a "Rock Star" would need to be an expert in them all.

Most Dev's stop with App dev and business design. Some go on to UI or compiler performance. System a little and communications and electronics almost never.

No man's Life, Liberty, or Property is safe while the legislature is in session. - Will Rogers

Has anyone seen a RID device? Are any available? Approved? Will this be a "LAW before the device" like CA Gun Microstamping?

Jason Scott uploaded all the video he took trailing to places making the BBS Documentary to the Internet archive. There is more there.

"checks fall of the list" issue has always been a thing. There is a term in electronics call "Muntzing". Named after Earl Muntz who, after the engineers created a thing (TV) he would start pulling parts until it failed. Then call it good. This did two things. Made the product cheaper and caused service calls to fix (Put back parts). He made money both ways. The "Anti Safty" issue is management's form of Muntzing the code.

Funny you say that. When I was sending compressed FidoNet Trafic (Looking like encryption) to Soviet block countries I got a knock on my door from men in black suits (FBI) asking me what I was doing?

If you like this document you should watch the documentary. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBS:_The_Documentary

During this time I was the REGION 9 cordionar for Fidonet and latter to become the president of IFNA.

I agree Fidonet suffered from politics from the first meeting in Coloradio Springs. As a software development project and public resource it was fasinating to see it work. Even the side stories should be told. SeaDog and ARC data compression (Later to become ZIP). Xmodem and SLIP are also tied into these stories.

I don't miss the $800 dolar phone bills I plaid for myself or the politics. I do miss the people.

My personal contribution was "The Communicator" modem program (Freeware AKA Open Source) and the inspration for ProComm.

Thanks for this. This is such an exciting field. W5TSU

Wounderful radio. w5tsu.net:8073

As a person with 40+ years experence (Yes I started with a 4004) I aggee. Change is constend and the advancement of more and more complex systems is inevitable. Most of these is good but some with issues. The quote "A sufictly advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic" describes an ADVANCED tech. I believe it is the speed we are developing the tech that is the problem. We are more often then not ignoring the wisdom of senior developers.

I have developed a term for this. EARLY ADOPTER TECH DEBT.

And if the went so busy putting as steering wheel on the skateboard they might have some time to thing about how the seatbelt fits and bumpers. Speed Kills.

Having worked for the state, I learned licensing is about protecting jobs of the license holders now protecting the public. Case in point. You need to go to school for two years to be a beautician. You only need to go to school for six months to be a Cop and carry a gun.

I have never understood for profit medicine. There is a very fine moral line between, selling a blue pill that gives someone a "fun time" and selling cocaine for the same resin? Drug companies are making dugs and machines to "extend life" to drain the saving of the elderly. I've seen who could not pay for a "live saving" drug, give away everything they own so they can go on medicaid to be "saved".

Why does something old (C) have to be bad these days?

How we got here: Tech bobble gold rush, big tech (google/s) takes best talent, investors only want good enough (build to a price), young bro-grammers fill need, flood of millennials (like the Chinese army) take over IT. Now we are moving as fast as we can, in the cheapest vehicle we can build, caring other people's property. Some of this is good. (SpaceX?) Some is pandering gossip (Facebook?) Some are rubber dog turds. (Ha.. sh-- sells) The pendulum swings: Mainframes connected to dumb terminals sending CICS to real time computing (PCs) to AWS connect to browsers sending HTML/CSS. So the bro-grammers think they are inventing something new. Wisdom is learning from other's mistakes. Developers today think of anything older then 5 years as obsolete. They are excited by what they think is NEW but really they are just naive. Time is the flame in which or lives burn. If only more would take a moment and seek wisdom their products and lives would be enriched.

I've been IT for 40+ years. Still working. Still seeing the same mistakes made over and over again. I have a few young people I mentor and I've seen them move way above their co-workers.

So here is some words of wisdom if your new in IT. Find a co-worker over 50 and ask for advise.

Location: Oklahoma City, OK, USA

Remote: Yes

Willing to relocate: No

Technologies: MySQL, PostgreSQL, AWS, SALT, Linux from kernel 0.82

Résumé/CV: https://goo.gl/dPQ1HV

Email: Mark@Grennan.com

Time to through down on the IOTs.

This is what happens when management gives up and turns IT to developers. And I believe that happened when accountants took over because of Sarbanes Oxley. The accountants had no idea what they where getting into. Then the Tech Bubble happened and $$$ filled their eyes. Developers became GODs and now... This happened.

Just seems like another piece of code in search of a problem and ways for things to go wrong, because someone didn't take to time to research how things work now.

yes, Knowledge is a two way street. We can learn from each other. Age bias is bad both ways. The saying "Its hard to teach old dogs new ticks" is WRONG and this articular stinks of it.

Keep it up Carl. Your not the only one. I help fight Westlaw and put the Oklahoma State Constitution and Statutes online. www.oklegislature.gov / tsrs_os_oc.aspx

I think I'll buy a copy for all the BRO-Grammers in my office.

10,000 hour rule seems to be true. But I believe you can work on more then one skill at a time.

So in a 40 year career you can master about eight to ten skills.

I didn't say I'm also an artist.

Totally hands on. I mentor not manage.

Overwhelmed, no. More excited by advancement in knowledge. I'm more frustrated by the number of subjects that could be investigated that go un-explored.

We all have hopes that new things like languages will make things better or easier. Mostly it does. Today's hardware beats the 4004 CPU I started with.

Technology will move forward but building tech on back tech is a bad idea.

If you hear "..It's like..." or "...we always..." then the mentor is doing it wrong. Experience is only good in details.

Single wire morse code with distributor becomes X bit X stop bit serial becomes teletype. Teletype with protocol (STOP = .) ... becomes TCPIP.

Yes, "strong opinions loosely held" is what you are looking for in a mentor.

Explains why stile matters.

... if (!spfont)

    return;

Just add the CR and all is reveled.