In my first computer class, we entered our programs using a line editor, and unless we were unlucky, had a CRT to work with (although the unlucky still go stuck with the linotype). We had a text book, some well thumbed compiler manuals on a bookshelf that were shared among the many students, and there was always, somewhere, that guy (or less often but still present, that girl), who soaked it up and knew the answers to the real tricky stuff.
As I moved into the workplace, we had CRTs still, but some had graphics capabilities, there were still tons of manuals on our shelves (and for most of us, we each had our own copy). If you were one of the lucky ones, you got graphics. The manuals were less well thumbed, and somewhere in the office, there was that guy (or more frequently, that gal) who knew how to find the answers.
Later, we all got to move up to 16, then 256, then 16384 colors, with 640 x 480 resolution, and then 800 x 600, and if you were one of the lucky ones, 1024 x 800 displays. Email came to the fore. Manuals were still handy, yet there was still that person. Sometimes they'd be in another office. You'd pick up the phone, or send them an email. After two or three forwards and days, or more depending upon the challenge, the e-mail would come back with the answer. And because that person had email, if they didn't know the answer, they at least knew who did.
And then came the Internet, and CD drives. Instead of a shelf of books and a file drawer full of disks you saved because you just might need them again, there was the almighty CD. And books were fewer. And if you were one of the lucky ones, you had INTERNET! And that guy or gal might be a half-continent away, and e-mail was reliable and you'd only need to way a few hours. And he or she probably had Internet, at least at home, because they still sucked it all in, and knew where to find the answer, on the Internet, or on the CD. Of course, you still had a drawer full of CDs, but at least it was a normal one instead of a file drawer.
Now we have StackTrace, and web sites, and volumes of data. You can ask Google or Bing. Training is online, complete with slides and audio. that person has a blog, and a twitter account or a linked in, or all three. You no longer need to be lucky to have a laptop, though if you have a touch screen or tablet, you can probably to count yourself among the lucky. You can read what that person has to say daily, or even listen to them or better yet watch them. That person now has fans.
I'm a fan of lot of people out there. You know who you are. I couldn't this person without you being that person. Thanks.
-- Keith
As I moved into the workplace, we had CRTs still, but some had graphics capabilities, there were still tons of manuals on our shelves (and for most of us, we each had our own copy). If you were one of the lucky ones, you got graphics. The manuals were less well thumbed, and somewhere in the office, there was that guy (or more frequently, that gal) who knew how to find the answers.
Later, we all got to move up to 16, then 256, then 16384 colors, with 640 x 480 resolution, and then 800 x 600, and if you were one of the lucky ones, 1024 x 800 displays. Email came to the fore. Manuals were still handy, yet there was still that person. Sometimes they'd be in another office. You'd pick up the phone, or send them an email. After two or three forwards and days, or more depending upon the challenge, the e-mail would come back with the answer. And because that person had email, if they didn't know the answer, they at least knew who did.
And then came the Internet, and CD drives. Instead of a shelf of books and a file drawer full of disks you saved because you just might need them again, there was the almighty CD. And books were fewer. And if you were one of the lucky ones, you had INTERNET! And that guy or gal might be a half-continent away, and e-mail was reliable and you'd only need to way a few hours. And he or she probably had Internet, at least at home, because they still sucked it all in, and knew where to find the answer, on the Internet, or on the CD. Of course, you still had a drawer full of CDs, but at least it was a normal one instead of a file drawer.
Now we have StackTrace, and web sites, and volumes of data. You can ask Google or Bing. Training is online, complete with slides and audio. that person has a blog, and a twitter account or a linked in, or all three. You no longer need to be lucky to have a laptop, though if you have a touch screen or tablet, you can probably to count yourself among the lucky. You can read what that person has to say daily, or even listen to them or better yet watch them. That person now has fans.
I'm a fan of lot of people out there. You know who you are. I couldn't this person without you being that person. Thanks.
-- Keith
So true. Your post took me back quite a way in my career. But you're right. There was always that one person, nice, willing to share, and glad for you when their input helped you.
ReplyDelete- "linotype" should be "teletype"?
ReplyDelete- "StackTrace" should be "StackOverflow"?
- "I couldn't [be] this person ...."
(To delete when done.)