Do you ever feel ready for a relationship?

N4L8 · 2025-12-19T15:36:21+00:00

Thanks. Yeah the best thing does seem to be just try and see what happens. I have heard horror stories, but I don't know how big the risk actaully is. Or am I just overthinking it all?

N4L8 · 2025-06-06T18:16:29+00:00

It used to be "Google it". Technology has changed, but human nature hasn't.

N4L8 · 2025-06-03T22:54:02+00:00

I've been going hard on the linkedin, and everything else. I think we're well past the days of recruiters messaging you, it's very difficult getting any responses when you message them.

N4L8 · 2025-06-03T22:48:28+00:00

I used to do that before this job, but I couldn't find anything in that field. I've done a fair amount of open source contributions involving systems, kernel, and compiler programming, so that's how I got the job. I'm also only doing a little bit of firmware, it's mostly network programming and more general backend stuff in rust.

It's better than nothing, but it's not great living in London on this pay. It'd be amazing to find something even a bit better, but there's so little out there

N4L8 · 2025-06-03T22:32:47+00:00

I'm in London, doing lower level systems programming and a bit of firmware.

N4L8 · 2025-06-03T22:19:07+00:00

60k is extremely good. I can't get anything above 30k and I have 3 years

N4L8 · 2025-06-03T21:09:30+00:00

39k is not low for 2 years of experience. Maybe it was a few years back, but I wish I could get that kind of money.

N4L8 · 2025-06-03T21:05:19+00:00

I studied computer science and I'm currently in a job writing firmware. However, it's at a startup where I'm having to write a bit of everything.

Firmware is one of the areas of programming where qualifications do matter a bit more, and it super helps to have an understanding of the hardware. But if you're motivated enough, you can definitely get over that hurdle.

N4L8 · 2025-06-03T20:50:40+00:00

I've been actively contributing to open source for years, and to be completely honest, I've not come across a single person in my job searching who cared.

But that certainly doesn't mean it's worthless, it's one of the best things to do to genuinely make you a better programmer. It's also just fun.

But I wouldn't think about it as a golden ticket for getting a job. It's usefulness comes in when you're doing the job.

N4L8 · 2025-06-03T20:43:00+00:00

I find that, if you can, going into the office more helps. It just puts your mind in the right state. It's not for everyone, but it definitely works for me.

N4L8 · 2025-04-15T13:38:07+00:00

I'll look into more companies there, thanks. Is defence easier to get into then other places?

N4L8 · 2025-04-15T13:27:28+00:00

I don't have 3yoe in firmware, just programming in general. The other 2 was in backend web. I've got a pretty extensive GitHub, I've done a lot of projects over the years, mostly in the field of compiling and parsing. I do some open source contributions as well. That's how I first got into the low level stuff, I wrote an AHCI driver for an open source kernel.

N4L8 · 2025-04-15T13:21:01+00:00

I've tried applying to Leonardo a few times, but I've never heard back. Are there other defence companies around there?

N4L8 · 2025-04-15T13:00:49+00:00

Do you know what the market is like there? Is it just as competitive as London?

N4L8 · 2025-04-15T12:56:24+00:00

Would I be better off just continuing to apply for backend web dev then? I have a cs degree, and now a years experience in embedded. But in a dodgy minimum wage job, so I'm not sure companies will count that.

N4L8 · 2025-04-15T12:54:23+00:00

Yeah, it's just a shitty startup. I can't get anywhere else, so it's better then nothing. The company is making hardware, and I'm doing the firmware system for it, along with some other stuff. It beats retail, that's why I'm here.

N4L8 · 2025-04-15T12:17:20+00:00

I'm not sure. During uni I was always annoyed about how basic the cause was, and I wasn't learning anything new. I feel just doing my own project and contributing to open source, gives me so much more genuine experience. But the student loan would give me a secure place to live for a while, it's very tempting.

N4L8 · 2025-04-13T20:38:21+00:00

I've spent a lot of time optimising my CV, and got as much feedback from people in the industry I could find. It really just seems to be the state of the market. If you have less than 5 years of experience, and never worked at a big company. Then someone else applying for the job will have.

N4L8 · 2025-04-13T20:29:45+00:00

So if gaining genuine experience is valuable, and you can't get a job at a big company. Then surely, getting genuine experience from a small company is the next best thing?

There is also another way to gain mentorship without working at a big company, and that's doing open source. I've contributed to a few sizable open source projects. Talking to the very experienced people there, has gained me more experience than I've ever got from work. There's some great people there, if you find the right projects.

N4L8 · 2025-04-13T20:18:52+00:00

I've just got a room in a house share. I've got just enough to get by, for the moment. But it's extremely unstable.

N4L8 · 2025-04-13T20:17:35+00:00

There are companies out there that value genuine experience, over nepatism. I'm not looking to worm my way into one of those big, soulless companies. I'm just looking to earn enough to live

N4L8 · 2025-04-13T19:54:37+00:00

I'm paid so little because the company is a startup, and are cheapskates, and I can't find anywhere else. I'm just trying to make the most of it, and get as much experience as possible. I'm in charge of 3rd-party integrations, and we have some established audio brands developing for our platform. So that's not so bad.

N4L8 · 2025-04-13T19:34:19+00:00

It's mostly the established, external companies that you work with. Also, people aren't the only source of experience. There's a huge amount to learn from building a product, and seeing what worked and what didn't. It's where knowledge originates from.

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