Useless Conversation

[Merusk]

Holy shit, we have force fields now?  How do I miss these things.

[Chimpy]

Knut the polar bear died.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12796359

[Der Helm]

 

[Morat20]

Couple of things:

- I've interviewed many people and put together many Job Descriptions over the past 5 years...and I can think of exactly zero times that I have met a candidate that meets all of the criteria.  What I'm saying is that these things are often little more than wish lists or guidelines (and hell, sometimes they are spruced up only to meet HR reqs for grading and salary).  Certainly, you need candidates that meet the general criteria, but they never meet them all.  Shit, if they did, I'd be suspicious.
- Given the above, when I am interviewing someone I'm more looking at how this person is as a thinker and a problem solver.  If you don't know Sharepoint (or whatever), do I get a feeling of confidence that you can actually learn it and master it quickly?  I'd much rather have a really sharp person who admits to never having touched it, as opposed to a dime-a-dozen dimwit analyst that claims to be an expert.  The latter guy might fill the short term need, but the former guy has a future.

So, don't dismiss opportunities out of hand just because you don't feel like you check all the boxes.  You're a smart guy, but all accounts.  You can learn it.

Thanks. I interviewed with a fun little company -- a technical screening by one of their actual managers who talked actual expertise and knowledge, though. I give it 50/50 whether I get a call back, since it felt like they wanted more .NET experience out of the box than I had. It was Thursday afternoon, and I didn't hear from them on Friday, but I'm not sure if their needs are urgent.

I had another one last week as well, that went well enough for HR to invite me to drive across town next week for a pre-employment "pee in a cup" test, which means I got passed up far enough to interview face-to-face with whomever is making the actual hire/fire decision. Either of those companies would be interesting to work for, although of course the one I'd slightly prefer is the one I think I'm less likely to get.

But both full-time employment with companies doing similar work to what I do now -- which is challenging and varied enough to keep me interested, without having a feeling of always being under a massive deadline or constantly jumping from fad to fad.

After months of nothing but contract-job offers (and out of state at that, mostly) having three full-time positions in my area, and then getting past the initial HR screen was pretty gratifying. 

[RhyssaFireheart]

That sounds like awesome news, Morat.  Good luck!

[ghost]

Yeah, good luck Morat.  Just out of curiosity, will you get to relocate out of Texas if you get any of these jobs?  If so, I'm jealous.

[Sand]

Holy shit, we have force fields now?  How do I miss these things.

Wait. What?





And good luck to Morat!

[Merusk]

First read about it Here.  and went, "Nah, it's just some BS comedy article. They probably got something wrong, or it's like the Luke Arm where I've heard of it but it's like the Robo-Pack Mule in that it's still only in R&D."   Then I followed their link to BAE Systems who claim it has indeed seen live-fire action and been effective.  Which is just fucking coo, but it's been out there since 2005, and there was an article about it in the Telegraph in 2010 but I'd only just heard about it.  So, as I said, how do I miss these things?

[bhodi]

It's not really a force field. It's a defense similar to Reactive Armor, except it causes early detonation of the warhead instead of redirecting the jet of metal.

To understand why it's effective, you just have to understand why/how shaped charges work, wikipedia does a good job. Basically, even modern armor is no defense against the jet of molten metal, the shit goes through pretty much anything, so instead you have to find a way to displace it, either by causing early detonation or by displacing the jet itself via explosives.

There is no actual kenetic resistance, so it's not a force field.

[Murgos]

It's not really a force field. It's a defense similar to Reactive Armor, except it causes early detonation of the warhead instead of redirecting the jet of metal.

To understand why it's effective, you just have to understand why/how shaped charges work, wikipedia does a good job. Basically, even modern armor is no defense against the jet of molten metal, the shit goes through pretty much anything, so instead you have to find a way to displace it, either by causing early detonation or by displacing the jet itself via explosives.

There is no actual kenetic resistance, so it's not a force field.

It would also be entirely ineffective against something like a depleted uranium sabot which works just because it's really heavy and moving really fast.  However, shaped charges are easy to make and depleted uranium sabots (or any high kinetic energy weapons) are hard so it's a pretty effective defense.

[Morat20]

Okay, when did software jobs start coming with personality tests? WTF?

I sorta get the pattern matching tests. Even the vocabulary tests. But why the hell did I just take a lame version of the GRE (or a slightly-better-than-average internet IQ test), a thinly disguised "Are you an introvert/extrovert" test in order to apply for a job?

[Bunk]

That was one of the main things we'd focus on in the interview, to be honest, but we were interviewing for phone jobs, not development.

[Merusk]

The company wants to make sure you fit in with the "Company Culture."  I've had to do the same shit before when applying to bigger corps. I thought it was falling out of fashion, though.

Also: Folks who try to run you off the road because your car stalled just before the green arrow came on are classy.

[Morat20]

The company wants to make sure you fit in with the "Company Culture."  I've had to do the same shit before when applying to bigger corps. I thought it was falling out of fashion, though.

I think this was a contracted company doing basically pre-screening and HR for smaller firms. (The firm I'm applying to has ~70ish employees). It was a really annoying test. Apparently there's another one when I get there.

Some of it was on business lingo. A whole section was basically 'did you like shop? Doing mechanical things? Can you read blueprints?". NO, NO I DON'T. That's why I chose a job that didn't involve those things.

Apparently that's all a one-off, though. The headhunter/recruiter/whatever firm just holds that data and uses it when matching you with jobs. I get to look forward to another, more specific one when I go in late this week.

Also, I got homework. A pdf of a few basic design/development scenarios. Those were actually pretty clever, even if one is a very obvious "Can you google an obscure procedural language we KNOW no one has ever heard of and give a specific, but simple, code snippet for it?".

The others are "If we give you highly limited information, what are your first impressions -- what tools, libraries, and design elements do you think are going to be important and why? Be brief."

[Yegolev]

1. Deploying SCPH-39001
2. Fuck Sony

[ghost]

Fuck Sony

You do seem to have your issues with their electronics....

[RhyssaFireheart]

Seen on the way to work this morning:  Jogger out running with hir dog.  Dog happily trotting along with stick in mouth.  I thought it was cute.

[ghost]

I'm thinking of taking a sabbatical from computer/video gaming for a couple of months.  Maybe I'll do some writing and try to get in a little better shape and spend some time with the kids.  Anybody ever do a planned break from stuff like this?

[lac]

Not really planned for it, no, but I do that every once in a while. Then I get bored from sitting in the sun reading an interesting book while sipping the good drink and lock myself in a dark room to play dwarf fortress.
It's a cruel and devastating illness, it is.

[JWIV]

I'm thinking of taking a sabbatical from computer/video gaming for a couple of months.  Maybe I'll do some writing and try to get in a little better shape and spend some time with the kids.  Anybody ever do a planned break from stuff like this?

I wouldn't say planned - but it's more a simple matter of things in priority  - basically gaming falls in the same category as watching TV after the kids are in bed.  So if I don't have a show recorded I want to watch, I instead play a game.

[Lucas]

I've been using Google Chrome for the last two years, since its commercial release, and never looked back. On the heels of the latest Firefox release (4.0), out of curiosity I tried the latest version of all the major browsers out there: IE 9 (64-bit), Firefox, Safari and Opera and well...Honestly, both from a aesthetic and accessibility point of view, they're all on par, IMO (then of course add-ons come into play).

In other words, well, the so called "browsers wars" are pretty pointless at this point.

[ghost]

That's what it comes down to, I guess.  I usually choose to game rather than do something else, and I think that the wife probably feels left out now that we have kids.  I'm going to give it a run and see how I do.  Then after I do the sabbatical I may reserve game time for 2-3 hours on a Saturday or Sunday.

[Yegolev]

Anybody ever do a planned break from stuff like this?

No need, due to the life-obstacles.

What mostly happens with me is that I get bored with a particular game, or sometimes don't play some entire genre (FPS, sports).  Once I discovered all the settlements in Just Cause 2, suddenly I was less interested in playing it.  That's what prompted me to start redeploying a PS2 in my living room.  The last bit is to attach the optical cable from the PS2 to some place on my Denon receiver and re-learn how to switch to that input.

I learned some quirks about Sony save files that I expect only three F13 members, at the most, care about.  However if anyone wants to know the details, I managed to transfer some PS2 saves from a USB-attached hard disk to a PS2 8MB memory card.  All of my SMT saves, in fact.

I'm mildly annoyed that I can't copy PS2 saves to the PSN online storage.

Regarding browsers, my personal satisfaction hinges on a FireFox add-on called Auto Copy.  Such an option with any other browser may prompt me to switch.

[Ironwood]

Not being snarky but is Control-C that much of a pain in the tits ?  Or am I missing something ?

[Sky]

I don't really need to plan sabbaticals, either. Life dictates when I have gaming time, and my gaming window is generally open even in the summer months when I'm not gaming as much (due to less gaming on weekends or whatever). At 11pm at night, there's not much else I'd be doing, except playing guitar or now I'm painting minis again.

Actually, I'm in a mini-sabbatical for the next month, but even that has some time in it for gaming. Last night I re-took a couple tests for practice and had some time to get in some Divinity 2.

Browser: No Script or bust imo.

fake edit: Reading you're reply ghost, it looks like you're the opposite of me. My rule is that life dictates gaming. Sorry if I'm on some critical raid or whatever, if my cat stretches out on his back and meows, I'm going over to pet him. When my fiancee comes over, I immediately exit whatever game I'm in and talk to her. If I suddenly get the urge to play guitar, I do it. It's the reason I dislike forced grouping, because it's not fair to other people to subject them to my whims. But imo life is much better that way.

[Sand]

That's what it comes down to, I guess.  I usually choose to game rather than do something else, and I think that the wife probably feels left out now that we have kids.  I'm going to give it a run and see how I do.  Then after I do the sabbatical I may reserve game time for 2-3 hours on a Saturday or Sunday.

Yep. Wife hates game time. Somehow us sitting together staring at TV is "together time" but me being 30 feet away in home office playing Dragons Gate or Dwarf Fortress is "ignoring her".
Honestly most of my game time is now at work on browser games or playing something on my phone while waiting for a meeting.

Or when she goes out of town. Gaming has become like having an affair.

But in addition to wife there is just normal shit like cleaning the house, paying bills, going out with friends, grilling, reading a new book, etc etc. I look back on my raiding days and am amazed how I devoted that much time to it.

[ghost]

Well, at most right now I have ~2 hours to game, between 9 and 11 or so.  This is after the kids go to bed and before I hit the sack.  It's not so much an issue of letting gaming take precedence of life stuff, it's just that I don't do anything else.  I don't really have many other hobbies that I can do at night time like guitar or what have you.  So I guess I'll have to invent some.  I'm going to start using that time to write some and exercise now I guess. 

[HaemishM]

I've been using Google Chrome for the last two years, since its commercial release, and never looked back. On the heels of the latest Firefox release (4.0), out of curiosity I tried the latest version of all the major browsers out there: IE 9 (64-bit), Firefox, Safari and Opera and well...Honestly, both from a aesthetic and accessibility point of view, they're all on par, IMO (then of course add-ons come into play).

In other words, well, the so called "browsers wars" are pretty pointless at this point.

They've been fucking pointless since Microsoft figured out they can't find a way to charge for a browser. Now all they are is useless dick-waving bullshit that makes my job designing web sites so much fucking harder than it should ever be.

Web standards my pasty white ass.

[Chimpy]

Web standards my pasty white ass.

But there are standards!

They go like this:

Microsoft: standard is anything that uses ActiveX and drives people to buy Windows!
Mozilla: standard is whatever IE can't do properly!
Google: standard is whatever gets us more data to mine so we can target ads!

[Lucas]

Err, ok, my point of view was primarily as a customer, but I guess that for web developers the situation can be quite different :P

Anyways, regarding IE9 64-bit, as you may know Adobe still has to release a stable 64-bit version of its Flash Player: for now, you are forced to download a Flash beta software called "Square", otherwise you have to go back to IE9 32.

Nice standards there, Chimpy :D

[HaemishM]

Err, ok, my point of view was primarily as a customer, but I guess that for web developers the situation can be quite different :P

I would kill someone in front of their own mother to have browsers work from the point of view of the consumer - i.e. they just fucking work and don't have to have specialized situations taken into account based on what goddamn browser someone is using. Dealing with Internet Explorer's spastic application of CSS is a goddamn nightmare.

[Yegolev]

Not being snarky but is Control-C that much of a pain in the tits ?  Or am I missing something ?

You can call it a quirk if you like, but I do find CTRL-C to be annoying.  A lot of it has to do with the fact that I am used to the PuTTY terminal method, rather than only laziness, although I do get very far down into the realm of finding excessive keystrokes annoying.  Obviously it's because I'm a UNIX nerd; I know where h, j, k, and l are, and w, a, s, d due to gaming, but I don't have an instinct for where CTRL is on my own keyboards.  Using a PuTTY terminal as a desktop, where highlight-to-copy is used a lot by me, switching mental gears to do a CTRL-C is jarring enough that I appreciate the option.  If I could, I'd also implement double-click-copies-word and triple-click-copies-line.

I might mention that Windows PowerShell also uses highlight-to-copy, as well as right-click-to-paste just like PuTTY.

Also, as mentioned already: NoScript

[Trippy]

Not being snarky but is Control-C that much of a pain in the tits ?  Or am I missing something ?

You can call it a quirk if you like, but I do find CTRL-C to be annoying.  A lot of it has to do with the fact that I am used to the PuTTY terminal method, rather than only laziness, although I do get very far down into the realm of finding excessive keystrokes annoying.  Obviously it's because I'm a UNIX nerd; I know where h, j, k, and l are, and w, a, s, d due to gaming, but I don't have an instinct for where CTRL is on my own keyboards.  Using a PuTTY terminal as a desktop, where highlight-to-copy is used a lot by me, switching mental gears to do a CTRL-C is jarring enough that I appreciate the option.  If I could, I'd also implement double-click-copies-word and triple-click-copies-line.

I might mention that Windows PowerShell also uses highlight-to-copy, as well as right-click-to-paste just like PuTTY.

Also, as mentioned already: NoScript

You aren't a UNIX nerd if you are saying copy on select is a PuTTY terminal method Doubly so since you can't find the CTRL key

Copy on select (and paste on middle button) has been a UNIX-staple since some of the earliest UNIX windowing environments.

[Salamok]

I used to think all the browser inconsistencies were a form of job security and served as a crap filter to keep the retarded nephews out of the profession.  Naturally I was horribly wrong and mostly it just kept ie6 around.

[bhodi]

Jesus fucking christ, windows live is such a piece of shit. All I wanted to do is play SINGLE FUCKING PLAYER red faction: guerilla. FUCK.

You must create a profile to save your game! An update for windows live is available! You have to update or you will be signed out! Your computer may restart! Your computer may hang! This is perfectly normal! Windows live is now taking over your computer! It will launch a separate install program! It will now launch on startup! Downloading Profile. This may take a few minutes!

Another update for windows live is available! Downloading update! Please wait some more! Launching external installer! Again! We won't check for updates until after you sign in and download your profile! ANOTHER FUCKING UPDATE! YEAH! Installing windows live sign-in assistant! A different and third program! I can't wait to play my SINGLE PLAYER GAME after three fucking separate updates!

Games for Windows LIVE client has stopped working. Check online for a solution and close the program? Restart.... Windows Live licensing and agreement terms have changed! Please read the agreement! Oh my fucking god, windows live crashes when I hit alt-esc! I continue playing, and find out that I can't save the game without it! So I get to exit out and restart! And never tab out! AWESOME, THANKS WINDOWS LIVE AND THQ!