Braznor, no, he is correct.
*Most* Indians are not taught to be creative, in the sense that he is describing. There is a difference between writing elegant code by the book and writing inspired code that changes the world. Any clown can write PHP, but to conceive of a content management system (Deanspace) that revolutionizes open source content management is another. Everyone can code Javascript, but to use AJAX to build the first online word processor requires something other than by-the-book coding. There are people working right now to develop wireless internet technologies that enable villages in India to use the internet in startling new ways...and they're not Indians. Arun Mehta is a professor from an Indian university who attended the Wireless Summit in St. Charles recently, and he said to me several times that what is needed is intelligent, creative geeks to work for real change in India, because India has a shortage of these people. He uses the word geek and so it confuses people, because we think of the Indian IT industry, but he's right...what he means is people who have the creativity and vision to use the tools at their disposal to build something revolutionary, instead of waiting for the US to pass them another great invention or innovation to train themselves in. And he's right in saying that these individuals are predominantly white males from Western Europe and N. America. The liberal arts education system doesn't result in well-rounded idiots...it results in well-rounded individuals, some of whom may be idiots, but many of whom are able to create, and innovate. Website projects in the US frequently ask for someone with solid coding skills, a great eye for the aesthetics of design, and great writing skills (especially marketing copy). Where would you find that blend in India? When was the last time you saw an incredible design for a website (design = layout, typography, stunning visuals, great use of color and space, etc...) from an Indian developer? It's rare.
The great tragedy of American education is that we are now alienating many Americans from this system of education, forcing them to resort to vocational training (Mc-Devry, if anything, probably offered through Walmart soon) or no training at all. And then we are wondering why an increasing amount of innovation is no longer happening in the US.
Attracting the best and the brightest from countries like India...well, that happened for good reason. The US had the best universities, the best business schools, the best law schools. Where else would you go for a top-class education? And an incredibly strong economy awaited you afterwards. Now, the economy is crushed, and losing ground fast, while we're increasingly giving up our rights to the telecommunications infrastructure and education campaigns that are this country's only hope for reversing this state of affairs.
Braznor: A troll's a troll. If you put an American spin on it, they'll put an anti-American spin on it back at you (and so will others reading the thread...I assumed you were anti-American when I first read your posts). Trolling back at a troll rarely works.
I have a decent idea of how helpdesk work goes...been there, done that. Scripted or not, it's still heavily dependent on being able to communicate effectively. Americans simply aren't great at foreign accents, which is why call centers in India are increasingly taught to fake an American accent (terribly) and read up on the weather in NY and sports scores so they can fake it if asked. They even have American pseudonyms. Yes, I have friends who work in call centers back in India...I know how it works. In the end, Americans shouldn't be worried about them...we should worried about high-end IT being outsourced, and about the reverse brain drain that is a. leeching this country of the brilliant immigrants we are dependent on and b. bringing us less qualified, less inspired, and less motivated immigrants instead.
I couldn't care less that a community lost its telemarketing jobs to outsourcing...as long as I could take those jobless telemarketers, give them the right training, and employ them all as Tier II network support engineers.
Dave.
*Most* Indians are not taught to be creative, in the sense that he is describing. There is a difference between writing elegant code by the book and writing inspired code that changes the world. Any clown can write PHP, but to conceive of a content management system (Deanspace) that revolutionizes open source content management is another. Everyone can code Javascript, but to use AJAX to build the first online word processor requires something other than by-the-book coding. There are people working right now to develop wireless internet technologies that enable villages in India to use the internet in startling new ways...and they're not Indians. Arun Mehta is a professor from an Indian university who attended the Wireless Summit in St. Charles recently, and he said to me several times that what is needed is intelligent, creative geeks to work for real change in India, because India has a shortage of these people. He uses the word geek and so it confuses people, because we think of the Indian IT industry, but he's right...what he means is people who have the creativity and vision to use the tools at their disposal to build something revolutionary, instead of waiting for the US to pass them another great invention or innovation to train themselves in. And he's right in saying that these individuals are predominantly white males from Western Europe and N. America. The liberal arts education system doesn't result in well-rounded idiots...it results in well-rounded individuals, some of whom may be idiots, but many of whom are able to create, and innovate. Website projects in the US frequently ask for someone with solid coding skills, a great eye for the aesthetics of design, and great writing skills (especially marketing copy). Where would you find that blend in India? When was the last time you saw an incredible design for a website (design = layout, typography, stunning visuals, great use of color and space, etc...) from an Indian developer? It's rare.
The great tragedy of American education is that we are now alienating many Americans from this system of education, forcing them to resort to vocational training (Mc-Devry, if anything, probably offered through Walmart soon) or no training at all. And then we are wondering why an increasing amount of innovation is no longer happening in the US.
Attracting the best and the brightest from countries like India...well, that happened for good reason. The US had the best universities, the best business schools, the best law schools. Where else would you go for a top-class education? And an incredibly strong economy awaited you afterwards. Now, the economy is crushed, and losing ground fast, while we're increasingly giving up our rights to the telecommunications infrastructure and education campaigns that are this country's only hope for reversing this state of affairs.
Braznor: A troll's a troll. If you put an American spin on it, they'll put an anti-American spin on it back at you (and so will others reading the thread...I assumed you were anti-American when I first read your posts). Trolling back at a troll rarely works.
I have a decent idea of how helpdesk work goes...been there, done that. Scripted or not, it's still heavily dependent on being able to communicate effectively. Americans simply aren't great at foreign accents, which is why call centers in India are increasingly taught to fake an American accent (terribly) and read up on the weather in NY and sports scores so they can fake it if asked. They even have American pseudonyms. Yes, I have friends who work in call centers back in India...I know how it works. In the end, Americans shouldn't be worried about them...we should worried about high-end IT being outsourced, and about the reverse brain drain that is a. leeching this country of the brilliant immigrants we are dependent on and b. bringing us less qualified, less inspired, and less motivated immigrants instead.
I couldn't care less that a community lost its telemarketing jobs to outsourcing...as long as I could take those jobless telemarketers, give them the right training, and employ them all as Tier II network support engineers.
Dave.