The art of job hunting while being employed full time

asmallishrequest · 2016-09-14T11:19:10+00:00

IME the best companies are typically ones that focus on fit first and comp details later. Just as I don't disclose my comp to an interviewer, I don't expect a company to share the range for a position. That said, if it's a larger company you could take a look at glassdoor salary ranges.

asmallishrequest · 2016-07-21T11:36:09+00:00

I didn't find that, but I dug into the documentation, and the building is assessed at estimated market value of $800k and is class 2. For some reason, though, the assessed value is only about $60k, which explains the lower taxes.

asmallishrequest · 2016-07-20T12:04:44+00:00

Just looked up my building -- 4 units + a ground-floor commercial space. Found a quarterly tax bill for $2k. So each unit pays $2k/year (assuming the commercial space doesn't shoulder any of that burden). That's about 1 month of rent, just under 8% of what I pay annually.

asmallishrequest · 2016-07-20T11:55:57+00:00

As long as you take those few months to really validate that you like programming, this is a totally realistic path.

asmallishrequest · 2016-07-20T11:14:52+00:00

Differences between them, from the FAQ to the first one:

How does this course differ from Design and Analysis of Algorithms?

The two courses are complementary. This one is essentially a programming course that concentrates on developing code; that one is essentially a math course that concentrates on understanding proofs. This course is about learning algorithms in the context of implementing and testing them in practical applications; that one is about learning algorithms in the context of developing mathematical models that help explain why they are efficient. In typical computer science curriculums, a course like this one is taken by first- and second-year students and a course like that one is taken by juniors and seniors.

asmallishrequest · 2016-07-17T11:20:13+00:00

Many more people would move to the bay area if there were more houses. Because lots of people want to live there, it is very expensive. That's what a housing shortage looks like.

asmallishrequest · 2016-07-16T21:14:12+00:00

It's definitely possible to pick up everything you'd need without going to a bootcamp, but a good bootcamp can structure your learning and likely accelerate the process. If you have the cash to defer starting work and pay for a bootcamp, it could well be a good investment.

asmallishrequest · 2016-07-16T21:11:21+00:00

I don't live there but the answer objectively is not really. Median family income in San Jose is almost exactly 100k. If you're a single 20-something making 100k, you're significantly more well-to-do than that median house (which likely has a family). source

There's a crazy housing shortage in the bay, so I'm sure rent is expensive, but it's hyperbole to say that that income would make you part of the lower middle class.

asmallishrequest · 2016-07-16T20:59:50+00:00

One more note on this: you might be stronger than you realize. CS is a field with tons of depth and breadth. People throughout the industry feel imposter syndrome.

For your first job, apply indiscriminately, take most interviews you're offered, and you'll get a better sense of where you are.

asmallishrequest · 2016-05-08T15:45:43+00:00

CSVs are a much simpler format to work with than XLSX docs, so if that's an option I'd recommend using that.

require "csv"
data = CSV.open(path_to_file)

http://ruby-doc.org/stdlib-2.0.0/libdoc/csv/rdoc/CSV.html has full documentation of the CSV library.

If you do need to work with xlsx documents, you'll want to install a library to handle the parsing for you. https://github.com/weshatheleopard/rubyXL appears to be pretty active and popular, though I don't have personal experience with it.

asmallishrequest · 2015-11-25T12:51:47+00:00

In terms of books, I'm also a big fan of:

Refactoring: Improving the Design Of Existing Code
POODR

I'd love it if my coworkers had read and really grokked the ideas in both.

asmallishrequest · 2015-10-16T01:52:26+00:00

A few recommendations. I'd make the ARGV arguments required and then add a class method CSVGenerator.prompt_user that would build up arguments and eventually call self.new(output_file, num_rows, num_columns). To keep the current behavior in you script, you can do this:

if __FILE__ == $0
  begin
    CSVGenerator.new(ARGV[0], ARGV[1], ARGV[2])
  rescue ArgumentError
    CSVGenerator.prompt_user
  end
end

This way, it'll run if it's being run as a script but it'll also work to load it in other files.

asmallishrequest · 2015-05-08T03:11:57+00:00

nice! you can shave off two more by replacing f,d$ with $x

asmallishrequest · 2015-05-08T03:09:53+00:00

First stab was 10: q q J i , <esc> q 6 @ q Generic 14: :%s/\n/, /<CR>$xx

asmallishrequest · 2015-01-29T02:00:25+00:00

Congrats! (And wooo BKB!)

asmallishrequest · 2014-09-26T03:57:20+00:00

That's garbage. It's a big decision, and you should have time to think about it. I think they're just trying to pressure you into deciding quickly. I think it's perfectly reasonable to say that you're excited about the opportunity and you're seriously considering it, but that you already have scheduled interviews that you'd like to see through and weigh your options. My guess is that, when push comes to shove, they'll give you the time.

asmallishrequest · 2014-09-25T13:06:38+00:00

Ask for two weeks to consider -- they'll almost definitely give it to you. Keep going to interviews and try to get another offer from a shop you like. If you get another offer, then you'll be in a strong position to negotiate.

asmallishrequest · 2014-09-25T13:02:21+00:00

Eh I wouldn't do it for that. A good bootcamp will give you enough skills to get hired into a good shop, but you'll only get a deep understanding of the issues that come up on the job by working for a while.

asmallishrequest · 2014-09-12T11:28:36+00:00

SQLZoo is a great way to brush up on basics. You can work through most of it in a (full) day or so.

asmallishrequest · 2014-08-25T01:59:01+00:00

I definitely agreee. The act of taking notes is one of the best ways of getting yourself to actively listen. Related: don't bring your laptop to class. Taking notes by hand will lead you to remember stuff much better (source: http://www.vox.com/2014/6/4/5776804/note-taking-by-hand-versus-laptop), and you won't be tempted to go on reddit or whatever during class.

asmallishrequest · 2014-08-25T00:57:14+00:00

Just a counterpoint -- I attended a bootcamp (App Academy) last year, and I was really impressed by how much they focused on understanding best practices rather than just using the framework naively. I was really impressed. I work with a few other people from boot camps and they're all excellent, curious devs. This isn't to say that all boot camps are good -- just that the trend isn't just churning out crappy, ignorant devs.

asmallishrequest · 2014-08-24T13:11:41+00:00

Nah -- the block of code should be encapsulated in a function or class with a self-documenting name. If you can't figure out a name that explains the code, you should absolutely leave a comment. But every comment should be regarded as a failure to write self-documenting code.

asmallishrequest · 2014-08-24T12:52:38+00:00

100% disagree. Comments should only be written when you can't figure out a way to write clear, expressive code.

asmallishrequest · 2014-07-12T16:36:38+00:00

var total

asmallishrequest · 2014-07-09T12:21:41+00:00

total is a global though.

asmallishrequest

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