mhoye

If you're feeling any sort of impostor syndrome, watch this presentation where the guy leading the team that's invented just-in-time optimizing-for-parallelism shell script recompilation admits at the end that after having done all that he still has to look up the bash "if then else" syntax every time.

Maybe you're not an impostor, maybe you're succeeding even though all this stuff is genuinely hard to use.

https://www.usenix.org/conference/osdi22/presentation/kallas

Practically Correct, Just-in-Time Shell Script Parallelization | USENIX

Dec 23, 2023 at 1:40amWeb
Show threadCanageekDec 23, 2023

@mhoye There was a thread on Twitter a few years ago where a Nobel prize winner talked about how it was a full year before he stopped worrying that people were going to realize he wasn't a very good scientist and take his award away.

Last summer I went to a lecture with another Nobel prize winner and he talked about how he still had imposter syndrome and worries everyone else is doing better science then him.

Show threadSarcastiCanadianDec 23, 2023
@Canageek @mhoye I think the most successful people often have a touch of what we call imposter syndrome. People with no questions about their own abilities are insufferable and really hard to work with - which limits their success in any collaborative field. People who question everything about themselves are high maintenance, and also really hard to work with. My entirely unscientific assertion is that the sweet spot is 10-15% imposter syndrome.
Show threadCanageekDec 23, 2023
@Plumbert @mhoye That second Nobel prize winner ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venki_Ramakrishnan ) talked about how you should be worried if you ever have to work with someone with no imposter syndrome
Venki Ramakrishnan - Wikipedia

Show threadBen RosengartDec 23, 2023
@Canageek @Plumbert @mhoye oh my god … what if the person in my circle with insufficient imposter syndrome is *me*?!
Show threadmhoyeDec 23, 2023
@fivetonsflax @Canageek @Plumbert If that question matters to you, it's not you.
Show threadBen RosengartDec 23, 2023
@mhoye @Canageek @Plumbert But if the question is just an excuse for a silly joke about meta-imposter syndrome, maybe … ?
Show threadIlgaz ÖcalDec 23, 2023
@Plumbert @Canageek @mhoye Recently happened on IRC. Reporting a "weirdest of weirdest" (I just made up the term) Nvidia issue with OSS/FSF driver to a very advanced/experienced developer. Response? "I have no clue".
I have spent 20 days digging the issue trying to come up with some log/hardware info/steps to trigger the issue. I made some progress but still trying and will continue. Because of that humble response.
Show threadMrCopilotDec 23, 2023

@mhoye If you took the up arow off my terminal keyboard I would be 85% less effective even after more than 30 years.

Accessing Reference material is integral to the job, a virtue, a coveted talent, not a failing.

Just in case no one told you.

Show threadIan Douglas ScottDec 23, 2023
@mhoye Think of what humanity can achieve once we have a genius who can even remember how to write bash *loops*!
Show threadBen ZaninDec 23, 2023
@ids1024 @mhoye I can remember how to write bash loops but I still manage to stash the dental floss in the fridge like once a week
Show threadOliver JensenDec 24, 2023
@mhoye
Show threadHowToPhil (Phillip R)Dec 24, 2023

@ojensen @mhoye

I am the one confidently doing it wrong.