Making cool programs

J

joerocket23

Weaksauce
Joined
Sep 15, 2007
Messages
88
I am in college and have found that I like making programs. I like the overall goal of solving problems with software more so than the actual coding itself. Right now, I make programs that simulate cool stuff or do stuff I think is interesting. I could see myself pursuing software engineering further, but it would suck to be making software for stuff I really don't care about.

For those of you that are involved in software development, do you find yourself working on projects that interest you?
 
Yes. There's no shortage of grunt work, but it's easy to make that fun, too.
 
and to be honest, your ultimate goal is going to be a career that makes some kind of money, right? The grunt work is going to be there no matter what you do.

maybe another way to go about it... There are lots of really cool open source projects that could use an extra hand. Lots of opportunity there.
 
I still find even the mundane coding to be fun. Even if it's something I've done a thousand times already. Between all the silly stuff will come something that you get there sit there and find a great solution and then make it work.

But as stated, there is always the grunt work no matter what and the crap you just don't really want to do. (Like reports, I HATE making reports)
 
build stuff that solves a problem for you, for fun. often, others have similar problems and happen to like what you've done. as mike said, there are ways to make grunt work fun (konami code, anyone? ;))
 
I'd like to distinguish grunt work from being mundane tasks that are part of making something neato, and mundane tasks that are part of making yet another CRUD or tax software and other similar shit. The former is ok, the latter is ultra weak.
 
I feel fortunate that *almost* every project I've worked on has interested me, though usually for different reasons. The reasons range anywhere from the technology (working with new/cool stuff), the project team (collaborating with a group you enjoy working with), and tackling an odd situation that required diving into some oddities.

Some projects were very mundane and light in scope. Though they were still fun as a lighter side task in-between other projects I had been working on simultaneously. Plus, it gives you more opportunities to re-evaluate approaches you had been doing tens/hundreds/thousands times before. And honestly, the nickel and dime projects (or even grunt work) really do help pay the bills!
 
Bigbacon said:
But as stated, there is always the grunt work no matter what and the crap you just don't really want to do. (Like reports, I HATE making reports)
Click to expand...

i pretty much do that 24/7 although i have just started creating an entire reporting environment which takes some of the mundanity away although i do find data very interesting
 
That's one of the most obvious ways that grunt work should become more interesting. If you've got to write or do the same thing over and over again, invent a tool that does it.
 
Most of my projects are interesting because they require me to learn something new, or I challenge myself to find a new/better way to accomplish something.
 
Interesting ...I am surprised how many positive responses are coming through about this. Encouraging :)

I like the idea of doing fun stuff just because. I recently contributed to an open source project for the first time and fixed something...its pretty gratifying to have them appreciate your solution and distribute it to other people.

I have found I really like that feeling that first time something runs and works. Its like a mini-victory every time :)
 
I work on stuff that doesnt really interest me, heck a huge part is working with databases which I hated in college but I still have a good time making stuff that works and people use
 
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