Jason Gorman
After 34 years in software development, I'm beginning to wonder if being "left behind" might in fact be the secret to a long career.
Mar 7 at 6:02amWeb
Show threadRussell GarnerMar 7
@jasongorman I've managed to almost completely avoid React.js in this way and have come out the other side where "SSR" is the new hotness despite having done nothing but SSR since 1996
Show threadSteve PurcellMar 7
@rgarner @jasongorman Same, I have tactically avoided putting significant life force into a number of trends that felt "off" to me, React, k8s, extreme microservices and proprietary cloud services among them. I know enough about these things to happily leave the deep expertise to others, preferably far away, and in competitors' businesses rather than my own.
Show threadRussell GarnerMar 7

@sanityinc @jasongorman hey I think we've avoided the same technologies.

I'm going to add Tailwind to this list.

Show threadRussell GarnerMar 7
@sanityinc @jasongorman things I've bet the farm on that haven't gone away: HTTP, HTML, CSS, SQL. All stuff with some kind of not-directly-corporate standard behind it. The binding execution language is in some ways the least interesting part.
Show threadSteve PurcellMar 7
@rgarner @jasongorman fuck yeah to this whole list
Show threadRussell GarnerMar 7
@sanityinc I mean I'd add JS, because I do lots of it, but quite reluctantly.
Show threadSteve PurcellMar 7
@rgarner understood, some things can be left unspoken
Show threadSteve PurcellMar 7
@rgarner @jasongorman amazing what you can do if you just skate directly to the puck rather than renting a generalized puck-location-finding, ice-polishing, skate-grinding mobile operations centre from ex Googlers.
Show threadEdTheDevMar 7
@sanityinc @rgarner @jasongorman I'm going to use this amazing sentence. Thank you. It cuts right to the heart of the conversation.
Show threadSteve PurcellMar 7
@EdTheDev 🙏
Show threadRyan McCuaigMar 7
@sanityinc @rgarner @jasongorman I set up a new thing recently as bare-VPS with bash script installers, deploy is a post-receive hook, and I’m now quite irritated whenever I work on something that isn’t this. (Also, having another bare repo around when github is down is pretty great).
Show threadSteve PurcellMar 7
@rgm the classics are classics for a reason!
Show threadSin VegaMar 7

@jasongorman I keep thinking of that bit in The Mist, where andre braugher and some randos insist that everything's fine and it's great out there and everyone should just wander out into the mist full of horrible death

Except at least he actually leaves instead of staying for the entire film and interrupting every conversation to berate people and mock them for "being left behind"

I really wish they'd just fucking go already. "Left behind"? Left behind where? You're still fucking here mate

Show threadJames BrittMar 7

@sinvega @jasongorman

We need a coder rapture.

Show threadclewMar 7

feels like we're getting one

@jamesbritt @sinvega @jasongorman

Show threadWouter LindenhofMar 7

@jasongorman

Sometimes it’s better to be left behind. If you’re standing at the edge of a cliff, you don’t want to be pushed forward. If you’re waiting for a train, stepping forward too soon will be a huge mistake.

There’s a big difference between falling and diving, and between jumping in front of a train and simply boarding it.

There is a good reason why software development is compared to craftsmanship.

Show threadEaster Benny 🐇🥚Mar 7
@jasongorman I've had a terrific career focusing on the boring things that other people don't want to think about.
Show threadnthcdrMar 7
@jasongorman This is the kind of optimism I'm secretly craving as these days feel particulary gloomy.
Show threadJeff GriggMar 7

@jasongorman

I know quite a few people who have built healthy businesses and careers doing maintenance on old outdated systems that were "left behind" by the rest of the industry.

Show threadf♯ a♯ ∞Mar 7
@jasongorman that's totally my plan for the rest of my career. 20 years in and I'm being called to deal with legacy a lot, now i'm bracing for undoing a lot of AI damage for the second half of it 😬
Show threadPaul_IPv6Mar 7

@jasongorman

you just need a bit of patience. ask all the FORTRAN & COBOL folks about Y2K. ;)

Show threadStacey CampbellMar 8

@jasongorman C in 1986, ksh/sh/bash by 1992, Verilog in 2001. Kept finding jobs that needed nothing more than that.

A pal of mine picked up COBOL in the 90s and that saw her through to her retirement this year.

Show thread90s Script KiddieMar 8
@jasongorman I still get paid to write no-framework PHP and build webapps with plain HTML/CSS/php backends. I even write devops automation tools in PHP. Most people's idea of PHP is about a decade out of date - you can write secure, performant, multi-platform software with it, and it's easy to learn and get started with!