Are programmers inherently pessimists and control freaks?

[hasu]

Good programmers always code to prevent un-handled exceptions that could potentially lead to errors. Also, they do not want anything to happen in their programs unless they deliberately wanted it to.

Essentially they are pessimists always thinking about where things can go wrong in any given scenario and also they can be control freaks because they do not want anything to happen without their permission.

What is your opinion?

 

[IronWing]

I hope so.

 

[nakedfrog]

Not inherently, no. But over time they'll learn that the things you describe are inherent to a good end product.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Not inherently as people, no. At least not necessarily.

But that's the hat they have to wear to be good at their job.

Most people are capable of doing something at work and then coming home and not doing that thing anymore.

 

[Muse]

I've met quite a few programmers. They are an intelligent lot and they differ widely. I wouldn't characterize them with a simple statement.

Being able to create applications that are functional, intuitive, effective, is a positive thing, not a cause of pessimism in my experience. I've known many people who can do these things as a member of a professional programming organization. If they are control freaks, their relationships with their customers will suffer.

Essentially they are pessimists always thinking about where things can go wrong in any given scenario and also they can be control freaks because they do not want anything to happen without their permission.

Quality programs don't anticipate malice, but they do anticipate possibilities other than those intended by the programmer. Part of bullet proofing an application is checking to see that the app doesn't break because your users don't do what you expect. That isn't pessimism, that's realism. Understanding this is liberating. Inability to understand that your users don't think like you do is being short sighted.

PS: Now, I may be familiar with a better class of programmer because I'm talking about developers.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Inability to understand that your users don't think like you do is....

... possibly a requirement for working in the FOSS community as a GUI developer. *rimshot*

 

[purbeast0]

I'm a software developer of 13.5 years and I can say that my craft definitely makes me think a different way in general, not just while working, but as a whole. I am just a very curious person by nature about how things work under the hood and ask a lot of questions about stuff I don't know, if I have interest. If I'm not asking questions about something you're talking about, then it probably means I don't give a shit about it.

I wouldn't say I'm really a pessimist but I am definitely a realist. I'm definitely not a control freak though.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

My glass is definitely always half empty. Pessimism is incredibly valuable to living life rather than walking through countless problems in life (financial, social, living) blissfully.

Speaking of, how about one of you refill my glass? It's better when others do it instead of me.

 

[clamum]

Not inherently as people, no. At least not necessarily.

But that's the hat they have to wear to be good at their job.

Most people are capable of doing something at work and then coming home and not doing that thing anymore.

This, and

I've met quite a few programmers. They are an intelligent lot and they differ widely. I wouldn't characterize them with a simple statement.

Being able to create applications that are functional, intuitive, effective, is a positive thing, not a cause of pessimism in my experience. I've known many people who can do these things as a member of a professional programming organization. If they are control freaks, their relationships with their customers will suffer.
Quality programs don't anticipate malice, but they do anticipate possibilities other than those intended by the programmer. Part of bullet proofing an application is checking to see that the app doesn't break because your users don't do what you expect. That isn't pessimism, that's realism. Understanding this is liberating. Inability to understand that your users don't think like you do is being short sighted.

this. Btw I'm a software developer with just over 10 years profesional experience. I'm an optimistic person though more than that, I'm a realist. But NOT a pessimist. Control freak? Not really but I can have some "OCD" like tendencies, compared to a lot of people.

 

[BudAshes]

That sounds more like an engineer.

 

[urvile]

I am more of a pragmatist.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Not me, though I am a cynical idealist and prefer that things are properly ordered. (That's just a preference rather than OCD.)

I suspect most good developers enjoy imposing order onto chaos, but that's different than needing to control things, especially other people.

 

[Elixer]

Good programmers always code to prevent un-handled exceptions that could potentially lead to errors. Also, they do not want anything to happen in their programs unless they deliberately wanted it to.

In a perfect world, sure.

In reality with deadlines, people screaming that you are 1K over the limit, or the always nice "the client wants it yesterday, ship it now, we can bill them later if they want things fixed!", and on it goes.
So, it highly depends on the situation.