" (Burleson, 2004, p.21) Therefore, it is clear that a quality education is the base that supports the structure that enables success in this career field and this includes "high achievement, intelligence, and a strong work ethic." (Burleson, 2004, p.21) Personal traits that are desirable in a programmer according to Burleson include self-confidence, curiosity, politeness, motivated, tenacity and a stickler for details.
III. Recognizing a Good Programmer
The work of Daniel Tenner entitled: "How to Recognize a Good Programmer" states that positive indicators that an individual is a good programmer include those as follows:
1. Passionate about technology
2. Programs as a hobby
3. Will talk your ear off on a technical subject if encouraged
4. Significant (and often numerous) personal side-projects over the years
5. Learns new technologies on his/her own
6. Opinionated about which technologies are better for various usages
7. Very uncomfortable about the idea of working with a technology he doesn't believe to be "right"
8. Clearly smart, can have great conversations on a variety of topics
9. Started programming long before university/work
10. Has some hidden "icebergs," large personal projects under the CV radar
11. Knowledge of a large variety of unrelated technologies (may not be on CV) (Tenner, 2008, p.1)
Tenner (2008) also lists negative indicators to watch for in the programmer which include those as follows:
1. Programming is a day job
2. Don't really want to "talk shop," even when encouraged to
3. Learns new technologies in company-sponsored...
Happy to work with whatever technology you've picked, "all technologies are good"
5. Doesn't seem too smart
6. Started programming at university
7. All programming experience is on the CV (Tenner, 2008, p.1)
8. Focused mainly on one or two technology stacks (e.g. everything to do with developing a java application), with no experience outside of it
Summary and Conclusion
This brief work has reviewed the factors that are important for becoming a successful programmer and has as well identified factors that negatively affect the success of the programmer. In summary, the programmer should be a stickler for details and should be curious and intelligent. First and foremost the successful programmer enjoys and participates in an ongoing process of learning and engages in learning of the newest technologies as they become available. The successful programmer has more going on than just their tasks assigned in the workplace but is also passionate about and interested in programming and has their own personal projects under development.
Bibliography
The Eight Secrets of Successful Programmers (2009) Merrion Computing Limited. Online available at: http://www.merrioncomputing.com/Programming/7Secrets.htm
Burleson, Janet (2004) Conducting the Programmer Job Interview: The IT Manager Guide with Java, J2EE, C, C++, UNIX, PHP, and Oracle Interview Questions! Vol. 3 of IT Job Interview Series. Rampant TechPress 2004.
Tenner, Daniel (2008) How to Recognize a Good Programmer. Inter-sections Business, Technology, Life. 13 Nov. Online available at: http://inter-sections.net/2007/11/13/how-to-recognise-a-good-programmer/
