The "That Moment" Topic



  • That moment when you realise your colleagues are "programmers" who don't know how to change the extension of a file when windows has hidden it as a "known" extension type.

    i.e. they cant change that .txt file into the target .xxx, they just write .xxx.txt and change the software accordingly.

    that moment.



  • Although, Windows' hiding of known file extensions is one of the features that I find truly idiotic. It makes things less consistent and more difficult to achieve in order to hide four characters which everyone had become accustomed to seeing anyway.

    Okay, I'm sure people would occasionally replace the full name and extension, ignoring the warnings and then be unable to open their file, but I don't think hiding the extension was the right solution to that problem.



  • Painful isn't it?



  • @Keith said:

    Windows' hiding use of known file extensions is one of the many features that I find is truly idiotic

    FTFY.



  • @Keith said:

    Although, Windows' hiding of known file extensions is one of the features that I find truly idiotic. It makes things less consistent and more difficult to achieve in order to hide four characters which everyone had become accustomed to seeing anyway.

    Okay, I'm sure people would occasionally replace the full name and extension, ignoring the warnings and then be unable to open their file, but I don't think hiding the extension was the right solution to that problem.

    No, don't get me wrong, I hate it too. It's one of the things I turn off on any new computer I work with within the first 30 minutes (depending how long I am waiting for all the updates to install etc) along with showing hidden files/folders.

    I just don't understand the mind that identifies the file that should end in .xxx and doesn't, deciding that the code is far more mutable than the file's extension, and just changing the code.



  • That moment when you realise your customers have even less in the way of problem-solving skills than you thought, when you're rung in a panic about a "black bar" that was "moving by itself" and "wiping out all my tax records" and "all I could do was turn the computer off".

    i.e. one spreadsheet cell was expanding to display whitespace entered by the heavy binder accidentally leaning on the space bar.

    that moment.



  • @algorythmics said:

    That moment when you realise your colleagues are "programmers" who don't know how to change the extension of a file when windows has hidden it as a "known" extension type.

    i.e. they cant change that .txt file into the target .xxx, they just write .xxx.txt and change the software accordingly.

    that moment.

    You occasionally hear platitudes like "Programming has nothing to do with that". Usually when a "coder" is made fun of for not knowing how to update PC, clean up Windows, tell you their IP address etc. I say to that, FUCK YOU. HAVE SOME PROFESSIONAL SELF RESPECT AND LEARN YOUR SHIT!



  • I'd argue it falls into the same category as a cab driver not being able to do things like checking the oil and whatnot in a car. It's your primary weapon of choice, you should know how to service your weapon and maintain it.



  • Baby, you can service my weapon anytime.

    Filed Under: Going in the erofic



  • @cartman82 said:

    Usually when a "coder" is made fun of for not knowing how to update PC, clean up Windows, tell you their IP address etc. I say to that, FUCK YOU. HAVE SOME PROFESSIONAL SELF RESPECT AND LEARN YOUR SHIT!

    @apapadimoulis said:

    I hate PHP, linux, and all other tech things I don't know and understand. Especially if they don't come with a completely intuitive GUI that I can click through, or require reading any instructions. Fuck that.



  • @apapadimoulis said:

    Especially if they don't come with a completely intuitive GUI that I can click through, or require reading any instructions.

    Like ... discourse?


    Filed under: Obligatory bashing



  • That reminds me of this issue I once had to field:

    "Errors in the url."

    I assumed it was a 404, but on inspection the page for the url (which they provided, to their credit) worked ok on production, staging, etc. I requested further information, and the client turned out to be referring to the encoded url characters.

    I was using an in-house 3rd-party CMS (didn't have a choice) which automatically named urls after the names of their pages. This later resulted in:

    "All my links are broken!"

    That's right. He had changed page names and hung himself with his own rope. The CMS wasn't idiot-proof, and the idiot wasn't CMS-proof.

    I'm going to leave the source of this one a mystery for those interested in playing. The prize is spiritual actualisation:

    "My page rank dropped!"



  • @tufty said:

    FTFY.

    I'm not getting into that argument. 😉


  • BINNED

    @Keith said:

    I'm not getting into that argument again.

    FTFY



  • @Onyx said:

    FTFY

    Indeed. For reference I'm a file extension supporter.



  • Maybe it's the hiring process that's the problem here.



  • Funnily enough, I identified that as a possibility before I received the offer.

    I am still green enough wood to think I can change things


    Filed Under: things that wont happen



  • Green wood sounds unhealthy.



  • And then people start uploading malware installers called SEX_PICTURE.jpg.exe


  • ♿ (Parody)

    @Bort said:

    And then people start uploading malware installers called SEX_PICTURE.jpg.exe

    I clicked, but no joy.



  • @boomzilla said:

    I clicked, but no joy.

    Same here. Must be blocked by Discourse.



  • @Bort said:

    And then people start uploading malware installers called SEX_PICTURE.jpg.exe

    Can you try oneboxing this?


  • BINNED

    @blakeyrat said:

    Maybe it's the hiring process that's the problem here.

    Yes, and the attitude that people should be able to use computers without learning anything has nothing to do with it.



  • @algorythmics said:

    That moment when you realise your colleagues are "programmers" "IT professionals" who don't know how to change the extension of a file when windows has hidden it as a "known" extension type.

    Seen this often enough to cry.



  • I wonder where the "average" IT worker falls compared to the average user of this site. They're probably worlds apart.



  • @chubertdev said:

    I wonder where the "average" IT works falls compared to the average user of this site. They're probably worlds apart.

    Good subject for a horror film!



  • @algorythmics said:

    That moment when you realise your colleagues are "programmers" who don't know how to change the extension of a file when windows has hidden it as a "known" extension type.

    i.e. they cant change that .txt file into the target .xxx, they just write .xxx.txt and change the software accordingly.

    that moment.

    The moment you realize the person doing your control point testing doesn't know how to create zip files. (Not fancy .rar or .7z, but just right click->send to-> compressed zip folder)





  • @algorythmics said:

    That moment when you realise your colleagues are "programmers" who don't know how to change the extension of a file when windows has hidden it as a "known" extension type.

    This is why I place no stock in the idea of a 'Programming License'. Because these are the people who would have one from a diploma mill somewhere anyway, and I would not. Everything I know is from self-study. All the education in the world doesn't make a lazy shit less of a lazy shit.



  • @trithne said:

    Because these are the people who would have one from a diploma mill somewhere anyway

    I always assumed people were talking about some sort of state licensing agency, like the state Bar Association that would administer some kind of proficiency test, not something like a diploma that could be granted by an institution of dubious reputation.



  • That's probably more accurate, but then I remember that the house I bought was wired up by someone who (I buttume) had an electrician's license, and the whole job was botched and broke regulations everywhere.



  • Are my images horrendously broken for anyone else?

    Edit:

    https://meta.discourse.org/t/image-within-link-breaks-when-downloaded-by-system/18745


  • :belt_onion:

    @HardwareGeek said:

    I always assumed people were talking about some sort of state licensing agency, like the state Bar Association that would administer some kind of proficiency test, not something like a diploma that could be granted by an institution of dubious reputation.

    More like the FE & PE exams in the US ( http://ncees.org/exams/pe-exam/ ). Different states have different requirements as far as the exams go for being able to practice engineering, but I think all states use the NCEES exams for getting your license. In most states, you have to

    1. get a 4 year Engineering degree from an accredited university/college
      20983094823. after graduation, pass the FE to become an EIT (Engineer in Training).
    2. 4 or more years of engineering job experience to qualify to take the PE for the full professional license
    3. pass the PE exam to acquire professional license.

    (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulation_and_licensure_in_engineering )

    At any rate, nothing like getting an MCSE or some other random BS1 certification.

    1: BullShit, not Bachelor of Science ben_lubar




  • :belt_onion:

    as in bullshit, but i'll edit it since I have a BS and BS.



  • I used to play a Java MMORPG where many players yelled "Seling bs" repeatedly inside a bank.



  • Make it an inside signal. If the person has it or claims that they want to get it, they don't get the job.



  • Note on engineering licensing in the US. Accredited school means accredited by ABET specifically for engineering. And you can get a license without a degree from an accredited school, but after passing the FE you have 8 years or more as EIT rather than 4.

    EDIT: or at least that's what I remember when everyone I knew was working on their licenses.



  • The hidden premise here seems to be that you need to be good at Windows to be a good developer, or so I thought at first.

    Thinking about it more made me realize that what you guys all seem to be agreeing on is not that the dude is a bad developer for not knowing how to change the extension, but for not being able to find out, and coping with that by writing a shitty hack instead.

    If there's anything I've learned in my short career, it's that what makes a good developer is being able to solve problems you've never seen before, because of a thoroughly developery mindset.



  • @toon said:

    Thinking about it more made me realize that what you guys all seem to be agreeing on is not that the dude is a bad developer for not knowing how to change the extension, but for not being able to find out, and coping with that by writing a shitty hack instead.

    yeah pretty much this, but I think for me the worst part is that there is no understanding that what they've done is a shitty hack. It was just a case of "oh it wouldn't work until I did this" and that's that.



  • @algorythmics said:

    It was just a case of "oh it wouldn't work until I did this" and that's that.

    /raises hand/ Guilty as charged...



  • I wonder if this is how .co.uk came around. ..

    <rimshot>


  • @algorythmics said:

    It was just a case of "oh it wouldn't work until I did this" and that's that.

    @redwizard said:

    /raises hand/ Guilty as charged...

    Honestly, I think we've all done that at least once. What's important is that you realize that you have room to improve. Some people don't realize that things can be done better. It's enough for them to check the box on their to-do list, even if it took forever the way they did it or a dozen bug reports show up because of the way they did it. It's like they don't notice any correlation between technique and result.


  • ♿ (Parody)

    @Bort said:

    Honestly, I think we've all done that at least once. What's important is that you realize that you have room to improve.

    Yeah, it's the difference between going back and figuring out why it worked and maybe coming up with a better solution or just cargo culting your way through life.



  • @boomzilla said:

    cargo culting

    All must worship the cargo. Those who refuse will be shot.


  • ♿ (Parody)

    @abarker said:

    All must worship the cargo. Those who refuse will be shot.

    Unfortunately, nothing happens any more when we pull the trigger of the gun, so those shot will just have to die on cue.



  • Usually when I end up doing shit like this, it's because the tools I actually need to accomplish the task don't exist. For example, that "famous" thread about me trying to send an analytics pixel on page unload on the old forum.


  • ♿ (Parody)

    True, there are situations where there really isn't a good solution and you don't have a reasonable way to get enough information to figure it all out.



  • @Bort said:

    It's like they don't notice any correlation between technique and result.

    FTFY. ;-)



  • Yes I will revive this topic, I have renamed it to be individual event agnostic.

    That moment where you finish updating the exact same code block in a second file to work under different circumstances, and look at the list of files in the folder and see there are 10 more files where it's very likely I will find the exact same code block needing the exact same changes.

    That Moment.


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