Well, see, here's the problem: programmers are artists. We'd prefer that they be able to be solely technicians or engineers, but we don't know how to do that. Consequently, you have situations where one programmer is ten times more productive than another equally experienced or qualified programmer. And given that programming is a creative environment, people need an environment free of pressure. Pressure shuts down creativity. It doesn't work for professionals, and it really REALLY doesn't work for volunteers.
Of course, that said, people need to do stuff that earns them a salary. Keeping those two opposing interests balanced is what makes managing programmers difficult, rewarding when done well, and, Alex, not easily summarized in your sarcastic sound bite. The reason Brandon sent out his email was to gently correct MZMcBride's management technique of "do this or you're fired". You then proposed the same thing, which is kinda... ironic. Managing programmers is difficult. If you think you can do a better job than the professionals, you NEED to give it a try. You might be successful! Or you might learn from your failure. ________________________________________ From: [email protected] [[email protected]] on behalf of Alex "Mr.Z-man" [[email protected]] Wow, I picked the wrong career path. A whole profession where you're never asked to do anything that you don't want to do and there's no repercussions for not finishing assigned tasks on time. That sounds awesome! _______________________________________________ Wikitech-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikitech-l
