Chit Chat Thread

Chat it up, fgj.

Edit by the Great Old One: Thread closed, continue discussion in the Chit Chat thread 2.0

Ohai there everyone. What's new an' shit?


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WEEKEND.

No plans for it though. I'm probably just gonna be a lazy ass and stay home.

I'll be hanging out with a friend visiting a friend from out of town, and seein my lovely lady.


X

I might be going to Amsterdam for (at least) half a year next year, if the internship I applied for is approved by school and I can find a place to stay. Especially the latter is far from certain, .

What sort of internship? Like, for what job?

I could do with an internship. A paying internship

[quote author=Tetsujin link=topic=29.msg197#msg197 date=1227913025]
What sort of internship? Like, for what job?
[/quote]

It's an internship at a (web) advertising company that does loads of projects for loads of companies on loads of systems, for example internets (flash), whole websites, MSN, and more recently the iPhone. There's four projects or so they could assign to me, one of them for a website for an AAA-like company, some project for creating some thing with some content management system, some thing with SOAP, which is (I had to look it up, olz) some data transfer protocol for between websites, and at least one project with the iPhone, with more to come. But we'll have to see which assignment I'll get when / if it starts, .

Only problem might be finding a place to stay, rly. I hear it's quite difficult (read: it can take three years) to find a place in Amsterdam, :/.

I could do with an internship. A paying internship

Click to expand...

Mine would be, €500 a month . And then I also get up to €700 from the government, for being awesome .

And then I also get up to €700 from the government, for being awesome

.

Click to expand...

Why haven't I gotten my awesome check in the mail? Dx
I get EXAMS SOON. Hooray! The only one I'm really worried about is Java, and it's not so much worry as it is 'I need to remember to study since handwriting code sucks.

That's €500 more than I'm getting a month

I should have listened when people said to learn stuff about computers.

You should all be sending me awesome cheques in the mail

I just got loan money, which is almost like a check in the mail..

Exams? Blargh, just finished those. My grades aren't what I want them to be, but I'll work on that next quarter.

Going into these I've got pretty good marks. Only a few I'm a little worried about, but I don't think I can fail any classes even if I get bad on these exams. Though I am expecting half of my class to disappear and not come back next semester.
Also, one prof just e-mailed us all saying that she's going in for surgery on the day of the final exam, so we get to do it online (which it was already) whenever we want that week. The answers appear right after you do it and you can view them any time, so all someone would have to do is try it, risk the mark they get, and then tell the rest the answers... but this class is such a joke I don't think it's worth it. Will probably ace it without cheating.

Balthea said:

I get EXAMS SOON. Hooray! The only one I'm really worried about is Java, and it's not so much worry as it is 'I need to remember to study since handwriting code sucks.

Click to expand...

olz, true. The IDE's that point out you screwed up make life far too easy.

Exactly. I've never written a code on the computer where I didn't have at least one error (well, maybe a few Hello Worlds, but I'm talking 25-50 lines of code type of programs we need to be able to do on the exam). Plus, stressful exams are not really the best place to remember syntax.

I had to do those too, wasn't really a big problem if you forgot a brace or so, just as long as the logic was good. 'Cause IDE's will point out missing braces, but not thinking errors / design flaws.

True. Our teacher doesn't mark hard, but she will take marks off for syntax stuff, which is where I loose most of mine.

Speaking of exams, I just realised I have an English exam next month on 22 January. Based on past exams and assignments, I'll get a B unless I work harder at it. But I'm weeks behind everyone else having being enrolled 5 weeks later than everyone else, and being a lazy sod

B is good enough, and English is easy enough as well. I think.

Got a 93% in my "this class is just to help you get a good mark and bump up the rest" class. I never read any of the required notes, aced the presentation cause I'm one of three girls in a class of 50+, and, ya... sweet.

I keep feeling as though I should start going to school again at some point, though I haven't the faintest idea on what I'd like to study.


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[quote author=X-SOLDIER link=topic=29.msg479#msg479 date=1228300455]
I keep feeling as though I should start going to school again at some point, though I haven't the faintest idea on what I'd like to study.[/quote]
That was my problem. Though, if you wait too long, like I kind of did, it gets hard to get back in the rhythm of studying, assigns, actually going to class, etc. I was studying English at Univ, hated that, dropped out, and now am just praying that programming will all work out.

In terms of work there should be plenty, the trick is just Getting It, basically.

What are wages like for programmers these days?

Dunno, I'd have to check.

Checked, but I can't give you a proper answer on that, . Hourly rates seem to be around $35 an hour, but I dunno if that's before or after tax. In fact, the only thing I know for sure is that a programmer gets a higher-than-minimum-wage-wage, . I'm sure there are proper sites that have a more proper answer to that question.

[quote author=Balthea link=topic=29.msg205#msg205 date=1227917307]I get EXAMS SOON. Hooray! The only one I'm really worried about is Java, and it's not so much worry as it is 'I need to remember to study since handwriting code sucks.
[/quote]

LOL, handwriting code is disgusting. I used to program and debug the test subject matter (i.e. gui forms, bubble sorting or whatever) in the IDE, and then write the code out 10x by hand the night before. Muscle memory ftw!

[quote author=Balthea link=topic=29.msg494#msg494 date=1228317897]
I was studying English at Univ, hated that, dropped out, and now am just praying that programming will all work out.
[/quote]

You seem intelligent, and the good news is that coding jobs are everywhere for smart people, and they pay pretty darn well. The catch is getting your foot in the door - entry level jobs can be competitive even with a degree. Most employers post ads looking for 2-5 yrs min. in a target language; programmers with 5+ years in a major language are gold, and more or less permanently marketable.

That 2 year minimum can be easily negotiated away as long as you aren't afraid to challenge it. Internships are a no-brainer. Study for your interviews - if you're after a C++ job, they WILL quiz you over pointers and the meaning of the const keyword in different contexts. Keep all your major class projects on hand, and code productively in your spare time, i.e. pick up HTML/PHP/MySQL and a cheap *cough* excuse me copy of Adobe CS3 suite, and make a shit hot website. Someone like Cthulu could get easily hired for what he does for a hobby.

Also, I'm sure I'll get e-raped for saying this, but consider related IT fields as a stepping stone. Most self-respecting programmers would cringe at a sysadmin or networking job (with good reason, there's zero intellectual reward) but the pay is comparable and IT jobs are much easier to come by. Certifications = easy $$$/€€€.

Finally, be ready to move around. A lot of coding jobs are contract-based now, meaning you get hired to complete one major project and then move on. If migrating isn't your bowl of fruit loops, you can have more job security (for less pay) if you can land a goverment job (preferably w/ a security clearance, if your background is clean.)

Good luck w/ school, jobs, life, the universe and everything.