> Gasp. I've read about horror stories like this. It worries me as
> perhaps a prospective employee of such an institution that I should > have to conform to these horrors. In all seriousness though, it this > really the norm out in the wild? Are there ways to detect such > institutions before applying? I'd guess to detect them you'd either > have to be a talented programmer and not worry about such things, or > look into different fields of work. Similar money-vs-quality issues caused me to have a distaste for working in software companies. I probably shouldn't stereotype, but what summed it up for me was a response when I asked about implementing an obviously necessary but unspec'd feature, "The customer isn't paying us for that." I found it vastly affected my motivation and job satisfaction. Following Neil's good advice, it's certainly an issue I'll bring up in any future interviews, but the business types won't like it. I have found much more satisfaction by building custom applications for in-house use. My favorite job was being the only C.S. major in a company of other engineers. We each had our specialty, were truly appreciated for it, and were expected to deliver our best. From my experience, in-house software prioritizes quality over marketing and even over economy if you're fortunate.
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