"The young understand new technologies better than the old do"
No they don't. The young, smart developers who already have strong backgrounds adopt new technologies, the old, smart developers do the same.
"The young can easily pull all-nighters."
Sure they can, and companies should be moving away from that as the code quality does drop off past hour 12 unless they're a super talented developer. In which case they're probably smart enough to know not to work an all nighter.
If you're not willing to pay $150k for a great developer that's going to get shit done, you're fucked already.
Precisely. I am 55 and very current. Many of my younger friends ask me about new technology. I'm actually past having kids at home, so tend to work pretty long hours...because I like what I do.
I have a lot of entrepreneurial experience and am a pretty good general business manager. Coupled with the ability to code, I find that I am in fairly great demand.
Where "$150k" depends entirely on location.... It's not necessary to spend nearly that much unless you're in one of very few tech hot spots that also has a very high CoL.
companies should be moving away from that as the code quality does drop off past hour 12 unless they're a super talented developer.
s/12/7/g
s/unless they're a super talented developer//g
Dirty secret about coding. You're typically at your best doing 3-5 hours per day of actual programming. If you're doing 6-8 hours, split that with a workout. The other working time should be spent on design, exchange of ideas, and learning new stuff.
If you use a high-productivity language like Clojure or Haskell and work on a green field, you'll find that you can't program for 12 hours straight, because there's no fat in the development process. Your brain starts to hurt after 8-9 hours. Personally, I can get useful work done for about 11 hours per day (I seem to average 65-70 hours per week, including writing which has taken a lot of my time recently, no matter what my mode of employment) but there is no way I'd be able to write code for 77 hours per week. Maybe 55 if I really had to push.
If you're not willing to pay $150k for a great developer that's going to get shit done, you're fucked already.
My first programming job paid just over half of that (well, with a sizeable bonus, but 3x higher than the "top of range") and I got shit done. Cost-of-living is also a factor. I would probably build in Austin or Boston (it annoys me that those cities' names rhyme because they happen to be the top 2 candidates for the 2018 tech hub, as I see it) where the brains-to-dollars ratio is more favorable than New York's. (New York has plenty of brains; the dollars are a problem. Fucking rent.)
I'll agree with your swap outs as a general rule, but I'd say code quality drops from 'not so great' to 'you shouldn't be pressing build' after 12 hours. Up until then you might get something done.
The last part is mostly about employers not willing to pony up for developers who know what they're doing inside out, and are willing to sit down and get it done and go home. I'm sure there's plenty of people who'll work for significantly less and get the job done as well.
Maybe endurance is a separate ability. Some folks can operate at a high level for extended periods of time, though their highest level may be below the peak output of others. I will say I have no quibble with your numbers as averages. To find someone who possess both skill and endurance is exceedingly rare.
To find someone who possess both skill and endurance is exceedingly rare.
That seems to be an age thing, at least in my experience. Skill goes up. Endurance doesn't go down per se, at least in the ages that we're talking about, but it gets a lot more selective.
I can do a long day (14+ hours) if needed, but I'm only 29 and I'm already up at 5-6 every morning. If I worked at a company that expected the workday to continue past 9pm (and I did work at once of those when I was younger) there's no way I'd be able to do it.
No they don't. The young, smart developers who already have strong backgrounds adopt new technologies, the old, smart developers do the same.
"The young can easily pull all-nighters."
Sure they can, and companies should be moving away from that as the code quality does drop off past hour 12 unless they're a super talented developer. In which case they're probably smart enough to know not to work an all nighter.
If you're not willing to pay $150k for a great developer that's going to get shit done, you're fucked already.