Working on products people hate (www.seangoedecke.com)
from codeinabox@programming.dev to programming@programming.dev on 28 Mar 12:59
https://programming.dev/post/47916942

If I were a better developer, would I have worked on more products people love? No. Even granting that good software always makes a well-loved product, big-company software is made by teams, and teams are shaped by incentives.

#programming

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ell1e@leminal.space on 28 Mar 13:08 next collapse

Perhaps it’s just me, but to me this article feels like belittling the problem by not differentiating between “hated” products and “harmful” products.

If a company makes you work on something that is hated, it’s fair and good to have sympathy. If a company makes you work on something that is harmful or unethical, like many perceive Co-Pilot to be, then an article about getting user hate that doesn’t talk at all about ethics feels a little tonedeaf.

I don’t know, perhaps that’s just me. I certainly don’t envy the writer for being employed to work on it.

its_kim_love@lemmy.blahaj.zone on 28 Mar 16:39 next collapse

This entire article feels like cope.

kibiz0r@midwest.social on 28 Mar 16:53 next collapse

“Harm”? What is “harm”? There are only well-made products or not-so-well-made products!

EnsignWashout@startrek.website on 28 Mar 18:43 collapse

Perhaps it’s just me, but to me this article feels like belittling the problem by not differentiating between “hated” products and “harmful” products.

Exactly!

Hated product? Oh well. My paycheck still cashes.

Harmful product? Oh shit. Sorry boss. I’m still working on that. It’s been confusing, but we almost got it. Annnyyyy day now, boss. Pretty sure we will get it on track next sprint. Or the one after. (Source: I once got well paid to “accidentally” kill at least one truly shit-head idea. It probably cost me a pay raise, but I left soon after for more money, and I’m still proud of that every time I reflect back on it.)

emerald@lemmy.blahaj.zone on 28 Mar 14:18 next collapse

People are mad at me for helping to build the torment nexus :(

But at least that means people are being tormented by the torment nexus :)

calliope@piefed.blahaj.zone on 28 Mar 15:20 collapse

If I were a better developer, would I have worked on more products people love? No

There you go, justify your shitty work.

If you were a better person, you would work on better products.

You choose where you work and what you work on. The fact that you went from Zendesk working on a shitty product to Microsoft working on a shitty product is definitely about you.

In fact, a reliable engineer ought to be comfortable working on products people hate, because engineers work for the *company*, not for *users*.

“It’s ok that I work at shitty companies! They pay me more”

CrypticCoffee@lemmy.ml on 28 Mar 18:27 collapse

A distinct lack of integrity. I’ve avoided jobs for companies who I know build nasty stuff. I don’t want that on my conscience. If I’m semi-competent at my job, I’d be enabling the acceleration of that.