Where am I standing as a programmer?
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@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@Polygeekery said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Networking is a contact sport.
PSA: don't take the above literally.
I wish I could experience the English language as ESL people do. So many of our figures of speech are odd when looked at objectively.
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@Ascendant In that case, you should also empty your bank account and give all the $$$$$ to me.
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@Applied-Mediocrity said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@Gąska
Then I'd say you're in desperate need of a CoC.A Corruption of Champions?
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@Tsaukpaetra My favorite game: Command Or Conquer. (You can't do both.)
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@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@Tsaukpaetra My favorite game: Command Or Conquer. (You can't do both.)
ITYM Crusader Kings.
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@blakeyrat I command you to give me all the $$$$$.
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@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
a recommendation from someone already working in the company is a very strong bonus to your score
Also, they can often point out key job postings that you'd be actually suited for. I've seen job adverts tweaked to make it easier to hire a particular wanted person, with the aim that there be at most one individual among the applicants that hits all the must-haves. But it's probably more common among senior postings; for junior programmers, the key things are typically “can think for themselves a bit, can program a bit, and has a reasonable work ethic”. The particular framework/library stuff only really comes into play for mid-level short-term postings, where someone is needed to churn something out ASAP; juniors are reckoned to not know any frameworks anyway, and seniors should have seen enough of them come and go to know that that's all BS.
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My favorite game: Command Or Conquer. (You can't do both.)
Would that be
(Command Xor Conquer) Or Diethen?
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@Tsaukpaetra
Ah yes. I forget that one blakey-advice not to pull this short stuff (in this case, CoC) out of my ass.
...
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@Applied-Mediocrity You gonna tell us what it meant? Or just stick with the joke answers I guess.
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@blakeyrat
Nope. I won't spoon-feed CoC to you. If it can't be inferred from its context, I'll...
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Another question that came to my mind,
What do companies expect out of juniors in terms of rdbms? Do they usually think it fit if the candidate knows how to use joins or do they want indexing, some kind of sql tweaking? And what about normalisation?
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@dkf said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
a recommendation from someone already working in the company is a very strong bonus to your score
Also, they can often point out key job postings that you'd be actually suited for. I've seen job adverts tweaked to make it easier to hire a particular wanted person, with the aim that there be at most one individual among the applicants that hits all the must-haves. But it's probably more common among senior postings; for junior programmers, the key things are typically “can think for themselves a bit, can program a bit, and has a reasonable work ethic”. The particular framework/library stuff only really comes into play for mid-level short-term postings, where someone is needed to churn something out ASAP; juniors are reckoned to not know any frameworks anyway, and seniors should have seen enough of them come and go to know that that's all BS.
I am in a love-hate relationship with frameworks.
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@blakeyrat We asked the department of human resources if we can get subsidised childcare. We have two toddlers. They said both parents must work(I wasnt working that time) and we would go over the income threshold if I had made more than 400$ per month. We dont qualify for "Sooner care" - the state medicaid or medicare, whichever it is. We make "too much money" I make 11.50$. My wife makes 15$.
I am curious. What is it like up there in terms of healthcare? I heard massachusettes has an almost universal healthcare. Not sure how valid this information is though.
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@Ascendant Can't speak from experience (too young), but what I've heard is that even though on the outside the healthcare system looks completely fucked, your employer should provide health insurance and that should cover most anything you'll encounter so long as you don't go to the emergency room for dumb shit like 'my legs are sore'.
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@pie_flavor said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
what I've heard is that even though on the outside the healthcare system looks completely fucked, your employer should provide health insurance and that should cover most anything you'll encounter
They key word is "should"
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@Ascendant said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
I am curious. What is it like up there in terms of healthcare?
I don't know the exact rules.
All I know is what I told you: in Washington State, if you're receiving unemployment, Apple Health is free no strings attached.
I can also tell you the minimum wage in Seattle is $15, but at the same time the cost of living in Seattle is ridiculous so I'm not sure that helps you.
What you really need is to get a professional job where you get decent benefits from your employer.
That said, your warehouse job is required to provide basic healthcare if you work over (check if this is still the cutoff) 30 hours a week. The hourly pay doesn't matter; the amount of hours worked does. If they aren't, that's something you might want to look into, maybe you've just missed a communication and haven't signed up for it. (Also if you're in a Union, ask your representative about your situation. I'm not a fan of Unions, but it would be stupid to not use their services if you have access to them.)
Stuff like childcare, though, you're not going to get that without a professional job.
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@TimeBandit said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
They key word is "should"
Don't listen to anything coming from Pie_Flavor, he doesn't know jack shit.
The point is that every State in the US, no matter how shitty, is still bound by the ACA rules, and those rules clearly state when you're required to have access to healthcare based on employment. It looks like my 30 hour a week figure is still the rule. Your State's individual laws may be more generous, but they can't possibly be less generous. (But, again: Oklahoma is one of those States that has been fighting ACA tooth and nail since it was first signed, so you can bet they do the absolute bare minimum.)
The problem is stuff like child care is going to be significantly harder to access. If you're in a workplace with a strong Union, you might have access to it. (For example, my step-sister had access to child care when she worked at Boeing.) Many or possibly most professional salaried jobs will have some child care benefit, but even there it's going to be spotty.
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@blakeyrat AFAIK employment-based healthcare is only mandatory if you're full-time employee - and if you earn $11.50, you're almost always not a full time employee (because you work 39 hours or less every once in a while).
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@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
AFAIK employment-based healthcare is only mandatory if you're full-time employee
Yes but full-time is defined as 30 hours a week or more.
@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
and if you earn $11.50, you're almost always not a full time employee (because you work 39 hours or less every once in a while).
That's not how it works. Look it up. The ACA isn't a guarded secret atop a mountain clouded in mist.
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@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Don't listen to anything coming from Pie_Flavor, he doesn't know jack shit.
I think this is the first time you've ever said that and been right. Amazing, blakeyrat being right about something.
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@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
The ACA isn't a guarded secret atop a mountain clouded in mist.
It was developed on one, though. At least, I think it was mist. It might have been pot smoke.
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@blakeyrat I've worked as part-time employee for half a year in 3 different shops, every week I worked between 30 and 40 hours (occasionally more than 40, not a single time less than 30), I've had lots of coworkers in the same situation - and not once I've heard of an option to get covered by employer. I don't know if it's entirely legal, but I know this is the reality if you work within margin error of minimum wage.
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@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@blakeyrat I've worked as part-time employee for half a year in 3 different shops, every week I worked between 30 and 40 hours (occasionally more than 40, not a single time less than 30), I've had lots of coworkers in the same situation - and not once I've heard of an option to get covered by employer.
In the US? Before or after ACA came into effect?
@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
I don't know if it's entirely legal, but I know this is the reality if you work within margin error of minimum wage.
If you were working in the US, and it was after the ACA came into effect, then not having access to healthcare was not legal.
But that's now what you said. You said "you never heard of an option". That doesn't mean it wasn't available, that means you never asked.
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@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@blakeyrat I've worked as part-time employee for half a year in 3 different shops, every week I worked between 30 and 40 hours (occasionally more than 40, not a single time less than 30), I've had lots of coworkers in the same situation - and not once I've heard of an option to get covered by employer.
In the US? Before or after ACA came into effect?
Chicago AD 2017.
@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
But that's now what you said. You said "you never heard of an option". That doesn't mean it wasn't available, that means you never asked.
I don't think you can keep the mandatory healthcare offer a secret from all 50 employees, and they all talk with each other. Also, one of my employers was a huge chain of grocery stores - so they had all the corporate bullshit like a unified new employee guidebook. This guidebook specifically said that all full-time employees are eligible after 2 months of being full time. But I was most definitely part time, despite clocking 30+ hours every week.
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@Gąska If you clocked 30+ hours every week for 3 months in a row you were a full-time employee according to the ACA.
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@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
in Washington State, if you're receiving unemployment, Apple Health is free no strings attached.
When did that program start? I don't remember ever hearing of it when I was unemployed. It's possible I don't remember because I got 6 months of free insurance continuation as part of my severance (which I couldn't afford to use, because deductibles and copays still applied), and when it ran out, so did unemployment insurance, so I wouldn't have been eligible for Apple Health any more. Still, I don't remember anybody ever even mentioning it.
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@HardwareGeek said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
When did that program start?
ONCE AGAIN I AM NOT LORD AND GOD OF ALL APPLE HEALTH REQUIREMENTS I DO NOT HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS. Christ, people.
@HardwareGeek said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
so I wouldn't have been eligible for Apple Health any more.
Based on some random spew some asshole put in a forum? Did you apply? What did they say? Christ, people.
@HardwareGeek said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Still, I don't remember anybody ever even mentioning it.
Generally speaking in the US, it's a person's responsibility to know their own rights. The government does have a marketing budget, but it's usually not huge.
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@blakeyrat generally speaking, if no one talks about something, it probably doesn't exist.
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I have solid experience interviewing from both sides of the table, but not in US. So take this for what it's worth.
Since it sounds like you'll be going for a JAVA role, and you have a family situation, you'll probably be limited to larger business-y companies. I bet it's tough to get in there without experience, being a recent graduate or having connections.
Also, enterprise JAVA doesn't exactly lend itself to you fiddling around and showing off a bunch of projects in a portfolio. Maybe you can try putting together a quick Android app and putting it in app store, just so that you'll have something to show off. Other than that, as others have said, it seems like you're in for networking and slamming your head against the wall until something opens up.
Regarding DB stuff, as a junior, you should know the basics - create tables, set up basic indexes, and write SELECT queries with joins. Basically, what a single semester college course or a beginner book teaches you.
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@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
I can also tell you the minimum wage in Seattle is $15,
That is incorrect. The minimum wage is $0.
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@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Many or possibly most professional salaried jobs will have some child care benefit, but even there it's going to be spotty.
You live in a different world.
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@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Yes but full-time is defined as 30 hours a week or more.
I do believe you also have to have more than 50 employees.
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@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@blakeyrat generally speaking, if no one talks about something, it probably doesn't exist.
Therefore, state IDs separate from driver's licenses don't exist.
Wat?
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@pie_flavor said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@blakeyrat generally speaking, if no one talks about something, it probably doesn't exist.
Therefore, state IDs separate from driver's licenses don't exist.
Wat?Exactly: wat? To prove that I'm wrong that things people never talk about don't exist, you... talked about a thing?
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@Gąska He's referring to a form of official ID that is usually free, but that some places that take ID don't even know exists.
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@cartman82 said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
I have solid experience interviewing from both sides of the table, but not in US.
While I know you have good intentions (is it appropriate to say "I appreciate the sentiment" if I'm not the recipient of his words?), I know first hand that recruitment in different countries works completely differently, in pretty much every way. I've spent nearly a year looking for a job in USA, to no avail. Then I went back to Poland, and managed to get 2 excellent offers in just 3 weeks - and it wasn't even through my connections. So whatever you have to say, most likely isn't applicable to USA.
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@Magus said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@Gąska He's referring to a form of official ID that is usually free, but that some places that take ID don't even know exists.
Can minors get this ID? They can in Illinois, and this pretty much guarantees that everyone knows they're a thing (minors can't have driver's license after all). I know things are different in every state, but are they that much different in this one regard?
Anyway, my point is that if something exists, and it's very beneficial, and many people use it, it's statistically very unlikely to never hear of it at one point over a long period of time.
And generally about US welfare: all the programs and rules are so complicated and the limits so strict that to benefit from them, you must spend significant part of your life just chasing after benefits - but when you do, you can earn more money than you'd ever do on a low-level job. So living off welfare is totally a thing, just not for normal people living normal lives. And being married is almost always a big negative in welfare programs qualifications.
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@Polygeekery said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
I can also tell you the minimum wage in Seattle is $15,
That is incorrect. The minimum wage is $0.
And the higher the "minimum wage," the more people earn the real minimum wage. And any further discussion along this line should probably go in the
, or a mod might have to get off his 
and Jeff it.
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@Polygeekery said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@blakeyrat said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Many or possibly most professional salaried jobs will have some child care benefit, but even there it's going to be spotty.
You live in a different world.
I may have a skewed view of the situation, living in a high-tech mecca, but I would think most would have access to a dependent care FSA, but any kind of actual child care benefit is very rare, even in Silly Valley.
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@Ascendant said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Came to California, couldn't find housing.
Last I checked, it's hard to find property in the Bay Area for under seven figures. And most of it is ancient construction. I was considering moving back out there a few years ago but am glad I decided against it, for that (and several other reasons).
Moved to Oklahoma, been squatting at friends for 1 year while my green card process was finally finished.
I would hope OKC and Tulsa at least would be decent.
Wife and I have had depression, PTSD, anxiety.
We could afford to see therapists, medicine and couple's therapists on the minimum wage in South Korea.That's still there. Can't afford therapists in America.(Duh?)
It only cost me a $30 copay every visit when I was seeing one every couple weeks. Is that too steep?
Right now, my shoulder joint hurts. I would have gone to a clinic to see if it's something bad or nothing serious. If it's something bad, I would still save money because I catch it early. Universal healthcare = poor care quality? Ha!
The usual practice here would be to schedule an appointment with your primary care doctor or go to an urgent care clinic.
Now if you think I'm going over to the patriotic side and comparing unfavorably against the U.S. don't get me wrong. There are plenty of shit I don't like about Korea.
I've heard enough good and bad things about Korea from some friends who lived there to accept that when it comes to first-world countries, you're generally trading some things for other things when moving between them.
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@Ascendant said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Thanks everyone for advice. I had felt discouraged after a few phone calls from recruiters. They said they need a portfolio because of the gap in my career(the 1year or so of waiting for my green card). I don't have a portfolio. I don't know what kind of web app I should make for that purpose either.
Probably best to make something small. Is there a productivity app that might fill a need you have? If it fills some gap for you, chances are it'll be helpful to someone else as well.
And I felt - and still kinda feel inadequate.
I am fantasising that American software engineers know all the frameworks' config by heart and are an expert in algorithms and design patterns.
Dear God, they don't. Many of them are barely able to commit a code change that's actually functional.
I had to take a job, any job to pay the bills and the rent.
So I took this overnight shelf stocking.Koreans tell each other that America is a great place to live. They even say it's a welfare heaven.
What a fool I was. I had no idea and I dismissed my wife's warnings.
Yeah, but you actually realized your mistakes, which means you've learned from them and have a decent chance of breaking out of the cycle.
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@Ascendant said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@JazzyJosh "And I'd expect I'd be able to talk about the common Gang of Four patterns (Decorator, Builder, Factory, Facade, Adapter, Composite, etc.)"
Expect that most adequate programmers know and appropriately apply the GoF patterns or expect that only out of the ones in AI or high frequency trading?
Just trying to get your message clear.
If you're able to even namedrop someone like Fowler during an interview, that already puts you in the top half (or higher) of candidates.
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@Ascendant said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
By passing the standard process on the basis of personal connectionn is very odd to me. Please forgive me for beimg so foreign but that practice is highly frowned upon back in the old country and that idea is somewhat embedded in my mindset. However, I am all for adaptimg to a new environment and if that is ok in America, I should give it a try. Thank you for your advice!
There's nothing shameful about being surprised by it. I've lived in this country all my life and I was surprised that applicants were expected to be "aggressive." I agree that on the surface it may seem rude and imposing, but there's a flip side to it:
- Remember that job positions are often created in response to a crisis. Imagine things from the employer's side. "Oh crap, we're getting slammed with a lot of new work. It would really be nice to spin up another developer, and we just happen to have the budget for it. Hmm...." So they put up a posting.
- Being that they are in the midst of a crisis, they may not have adequate resources to devote to vetting candidates, so when some guy enthusiastically comes out of the blue offering to solve their problem who seems to meet the qualifications, it can be like a dream come true.
If in a job posting, there's a phone number, you should call that number and ask about the position. If there's an email address, you should send an email to it. Plenty of companies wish they could hire someone qualified, but wonder why they never get any bites. When I have reached out to prospective employers, their response has been universally positive, even if they were looking for someone more qualified or the position had been filled already.
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@Groaner Thank you for your advice!
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@Gąska said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@blakeyrat generally speaking, if no one talks about something, it probably doesn't exist.
On the contrary, recently, if everyone's talking about something, it might not ever exist.
Filed under: Here's looking at you, Hyperloop!
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@Groaner said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Being that they are in the midst of a crisis, they may not have adequate resources to devote to vetting candidates, so when some guy enthusiastically comes out of the blue offering to solve their problem who seems to meet the qualifications, it can be like a dream come true.
That's how I shoved myself into my current position!Granted, it's a startup with all the stigma, but it did work....
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@Tsaukpaetra said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
@Groaner said in Where am I standing as a programmer?:
Being that they are in the midst of a crisis, they may not have adequate resources to devote to vetting candidates, so when some guy enthusiastically comes out of the blue offering to solve their problem who seems to meet the qualifications, it can be like a dream come true.
That's how I shoved myself into my current position!And I, mine.
Granted, it's a startup with all the stigma, but it did work....
- Do the paychecks clear?
- In the course of your duties, are you breaking any laws?
If the answers are Yes and No, there should be nothing to worry about.
Impostor syndrome - Wikipedia