NewB to Programming

[DigitalCancer]

Hey Guys...I'm a little frustrated today as somethings happened to work and I wanted to kinda get some advice I guess.

I've been doing a 'little' programming with my new job (I started in March as a HelpDesk Analyst). We use a program called inRule to create out forms for underwriting for insurance coverage on houses. There is also a bit of jQuery that our current programmer uses to create 'effects' on the page to hide/show certain fields at certain times, etc.

Anyway...my concern is that I was told when coming into the job that I would be exposed to 'some' programming, which I have, while doing all helpdesk stuff, there's only about 12ppl in the building so I don't really do a ton of helpdesk side stuff. Today though, I've learned that our programmer will be moving back to Arizona and taking a job there once he graduates in December, his last day will most likely be sometime at the end of december which gives me roughly 1 month to learn everything he does.

Problem is, in 6 months, they've not prepared me for this type of change and I'm really worried because I am a total newb to programming. I understand some, but I don't feel adequate enough to be on my own yet.

Is it hard to get into programming? What books would really help me in transforming over to this position? I really need to learn the programming basics (how to think about the problem) and some jQuery...I don't think I'll really need anything past that.

I know that they use .NET on the server, we have a company that manages everything for us and creates the bones of a form and then we go in and edit all of the fields and rules for those fields. We use jQuery to do things on the page that they won't actually allow us to do any other way.

 

[Cogman]

They REALLY need to get someone that has been trained to do programming. It isn't very wise to put someone in your situation into the position of lead programmer. Ultimately this is a really bad move on your companies part.

I can recommend books, but good programming comes with time and experience. Read through the code base, get a feel for what is going on, experiment. Those will teach you probably the fastest. But to get the real theory behind programming takes quite a bit of work.

 

[Bulldog13]

Figure out what .NET language they are using for server side code...and start watching videos on it. I recommend www.learnvisualstudio.net .

Once you have a grasp on server side code, learn some jQuery. I recommend http://tekpub.com/production/jquery for that.

I understand there are numerous free resources out there, but sometimes it is sooooo much easier to just grind through a few quality videos on things.

Both of these cost some money, so make management pay for it. Also, ask the programmer to comment the heck out of his code before he goes.

As for "Is it hard to get into programming?", well, I think certain people have some natural inclination to it, but more importantly, I think a better question is "Will I enjoy it?".

 

[degibson]

They REALLY need to get someone that has been trained to do programming. It isn't very wise to put someone in your situation into the position of lead programmer. Ultimately this is a really bad move on your companies part.

Agreed. This is bad for the company -- and also bad for you, OP. Unless you are more experienced than you're letting on, you are probably going to have a pretty rough time and may be 'turned off' to programming as a result.

 

[DigitalCancer]

Agreed. This is bad for the company -- and also bad for you, OP. Unless you are more experienced than you're letting on, you are probably going to have a pretty rough time and may be 'turned off' to programming as a result.

I'm 'ok' with programming as it is, but it's not something that I wanted to be in full time...coming into this job in March, I was expecting to 'help' out with programming a little which is fine but now I'm turning into a replacement.
Given, it's not a ton of programming, I'd say the majority is done on the other side by our developers, but...there's still quite a bit going on. I have to learn to be careful with all of the data in our forms as I will need to learn to think about what will happen when moving data, adding fields, etc.
I've been helping fairly heavily for the past 3 months now but I still don't have it 'down'.

I'll admit, I'm scared, it's an odd situation that I've never encountered before. I'm all hardware, not software, although I do like the idea of programming I don't think I would 'enjoy' it like I do hardware.
I have 2 car payments among other bills and it's a great company to be in so I can't just...say hey, I don't want to do this, g'bye! ya know? I make decent money right now.
They gave me a great opportunity when I started but now it's going a different direction and I'm freaked out and have no idea how to handle it right now.

 

[Apathetic]

This is not good. The first thing you need to do is get together with your programmer and make him map EVERYTHING out. List all the server(s) involved and the rolls that they play and then have him trace a request all the way through the process, starting with either the logon screen or whereever it is you kick off the initial request for one of these forms. You need to know what the components are, where they run, where they log, and the process flow for each kind of form (widget A calls widget B and then C, except for this case where it calls widget C followed by D). Trust me, you don't want to try to figure all this out when things are broken.

Dave

 

[Markbnj]

Well, it goes without saying that programming is a complex, highly technical craft. Of course, Einstein formulated the foundations of the theory of relativity while working as a patent office clerk, so who's to say you can't learn to program? You could view this as an opportunity. If you succeed you'll obviously be pretty close to irreplaceable, based on the notion that you were the best they could come up with to replace the last guy 😉. And then there is a good chance of spectacular failure, which will make it difficult to slide back into your old job and pretend the whole thing never happened.

Should be interesting. Let us know how it works out.

 

[Cogman]

I'm 'ok' with programming as it is, but it's not something that I wanted to be in full time...coming into this job in March, I was expecting to 'help' out with programming a little which is fine but now I'm turning into a replacement.
Given, it's not a ton of programming, I'd say the majority is done on the other side by our developers, but...there's still quite a bit going on. I have to learn to be careful with all of the data in our forms as I will need to learn to think about what will happen when moving data, adding fields, etc.
I've been helping fairly heavily for the past 3 months now but I still don't have it 'down'.

I'll admit, I'm scared, it's an odd situation that I've never encountered before. I'm all hardware, not software, although I do like the idea of programming I don't think I would 'enjoy' it like I do hardware.
I have 2 car payments among other bills and it's a great company to be in so I can't just...say hey, I don't want to do this, g'bye! ya know? I make decent money right now.
They gave me a great opportunity when I started but now it's going a different direction and I'm freaked out and have no idea how to handle it right now.

You're in a tough situation that really isn't your fault (AFAICT from your post).

Quick question, when you say you are "in to hardware" What do you mean by that? Do you mean "I've done VLSI stuff" or do you mean "I've assembled my own computer". If it is the former, then programming really shouldn't be too difficult for you to pick up. If it is the latter, then you really need to let your boss know "Hey, I'm not sure that I'm completely qualified for this, you might need to get someone to replace that guy that just left."

Mark is right, Einstein did come up with the theory of relativity working as a patent clerk, however, so much of programming is dedicated to choosing the best solution over the one that works (Given time constraints etc.). Not only that, but writing maintainable code. There is a really big difference between the guy that just slaps code together and the guy that writes code. That comes from formal training and natural ability.

You getting placed in this situation is what creates a lot of the http://www.thedailywtf.com code.

Poorly written code is a nightmare to maintain and expensive to replace. The worst thing that could potentially happen is that someone else comes along that basically has to throw away all the code you have written and start from scratch (A definite possibility). This is very expensive and time consuming.


If, your boss still insists that you are the man for the job, please don't hesitate to ask questions you may have here. I strongly recommend against you doing the job, but if you must, then internet forums are some of the best places to learn what is good and what is bad in the coding world.

If you like, I can give you programming challenges above and beyond what you are doing at work. The completion and posting of these results of these challenges will definitively help us help you hone some strong programming skills (as well as give you the opportunity to peek inside how programmers attack different situations).

Programming is like learning to sing. You don't just go out and sing in a concert (unless you want to make a fool of yourself) rather, you practice many song with someone carefully listening to tell you what needs to be improved upon. You can't really just read a book and understand it either. It takes lots of practice (and some natural ability).

 

[Modelworks]

Talk to the current programmer. See what he has to do on a daily basis and what your job task might be. That is where I would start.

 

[bobross419]

I'm not a big programmer myself, but something that has held me in good stead is learning the fundamentals.

A full course of just pseudo-code in college was probably the most valuable class that I took. I didn't have to worry about learning the syntax of any particular language, but I got a really good grasp of the basic concepts that all languages have in common. Before this I had only a basic knowledge and copy+pasted bits and pieces I found on the web to get programs working. A huge hurdle for me was (and I know some will find this silly) passing and returning arguments to a function. Another was object oriented programming, but after figuring out function calls this one wasn't that bad.

I don't code for a living, but I do write the occasional script either for work or fun and I've gotten to play with a few different languages over the years. Knowing the basics has allowed me to have a starting point no matter what language I'm using... if nothing else I know how to intelligently search for something like "perl regex tutorial" or "java isNumber() function" that I need to learn syntactically.

In addition to the above suggestions, I'd highly recommend learning the basics outside of syntax. Hell, maybe Cogman would be willing to do some pseudoCode exercises with you. I don't have any recommendations for a book, but maybe one of the gurus can point you in the right direction.

 

[DigitalCancer]

Cogman -

It's not 'SUPER' hard stuff but it is still quite complicated. The programmer will be leaving sometime after Xmas, so I have until then to get up to speed.

Are you familiar w/ inRule at all? That's primarily what I use. It is helpful to use some jQuery and to know TR/TD's (I kind of do but could use a refresher). The programmer is going over some of this stuff with me as well.
It'll take some time but I think I can manage it.

I mainly need to wrap my head around the 'thought-process' of it all. Especially when right WhileLoops and IfThenElse statements.

 

[DigitalCancer]

Ok...so some things have developed further since I begun this 'transition' and now it's seems its getting way out of hand.

So, I'm doing much better with the programming and currently learning some C#, but our system isn't too bad and is fairly easy to manage as long as I can figure out the basics and I have examples to go to for when I want to do something specific so it's fairly nice.

But...

As of today, our company is being sold off to another vendor. So now not only do I have the stress of a 'new' job but I also have to worry about whether I'll even be staying for this new job. How stressful....I've got (2) new cars + Rent and other responsibilities so I can't take this lightly. I'm still trying to figure out what to do. This job has been a great opportunity for me and would/could make a very nice career. I have no idea what to do at this point, I don't want to let down my current boss because he's even told me to just learn everything I can and he's sure everything'll be fine. If find a new job somehow and leave them, I would feel very crappy because they did believe in me and expected me to be there ya know?

 

[Markbnj]

I would ride it for a bit and see how things develop, but polish the resume and do some networking to prepare for the worst case. Every acquisition results in the loss of jobs. Learn as much as you can about the buyer. Do they have a programming group that can jump in and take over your system? Maybe they do but they're already maxed out. Most outfits are doing more with less these days.

 

[tatteredpotato]

...If find a new job somehow and leave them, I would feel very crappy because they did believe in me and expected me to be there ya know?

You're companies being bought out, you don't owe anyone anything. The company would axe you if it was in their best interests. It's always good to leave on good blood so you can still have a good recommendation, but sometimes you have to do what's in your best interest.

 

[DigitalCancer]

I agree with doing whats in my best interest but I do want to wait a bit and see where this goes. Our boss actually broke down and cried (she originally started it up 13yrs ago) and sad that she wanted what was best for all of us (Yes, she's an honest person and a great person to deal with). Its just really scary, the company buying is much larger than us, we do 80-100 reports per day as opposed to them doing around 7700 reports/day (appraisals). As far as IT goes, I could go either way but they want to integrate their system with ours. I'm not sure how that will work but I'll know more details next week sometime. I do plan to ride it out but it's really scary. On one hand they could walk in and leave everything the same which is what our boss is wanting to happen and she didn pick these guys over the money, someone else actually offered more, but there's always th chance of radically changing things and then I'm out the door. I've only been there 8 months or so now and love the people/job and really want to stay. I guess time will as far as where it goes but I am on the look-out and will be updating the ol' resume tonight I guess just in case.
In the meantime, I'm still learning how to program our system and is quite fun once I get my head wrapped around the logic but that seems o be he hard part for me is thinking about how it needs to work.

 

[Cogman]

I agree with doing whats in my best interest but I do want to wait a bit and see where this goes. Our boss actually broke down and cried (she originally started it up 13yrs ago) and sad that she wanted what was best for all of us (Yes, she's an honest person and a great person to deal with). Its just really scary, the company buying is much larger than us, we do 80-100 reports per day as opposed to them doing around 7700 reports/day (appraisals). As far as IT goes, I could go either way but they want to integrate their system with ours. I'm not sure how that will work but I'll know more details next week sometime. I do plan to ride it out but it's really scary. On one hand they could walk in and leave everything the same which is what our boss is wanting to happen and she didn pick these guys over the money, someone else actually offered more, but there's always th chance of radically changing things and then I'm out the door. I've only been there 8 months or so now and love the people/job and really want to stay. I guess time will as far as where it goes but I am on the look-out and will be updating the ol' resume tonight I guess just in case.
In the meantime, I'm still learning how to program our system and is quite fun once I get my head wrapped around the logic but that seems o be he hard part for me is thinking about how it needs to work.

Yikes, sounds like you're in for some rough seas ahead. I agree with Markbnj, ride this thing out, but honestly, It makes sense why their programmer left. He didn't expect that he would have a job after the merger.

You're in a volatile situation here, and now I really understand why the company gave someone who doesn't (didn't?) know how to program a programming position, they didn't want to just higher a programmer only to see him fired.

Prepare for the worst, hope for the best. Good luck, if you are lucky they will take you on board so that you can explain how the system works. If you know your stuff well they might decide to keep you (good programmers are hard to find).

I would recommend learning as much as possible about how the system works. Make sure you know what every function called does because that is where you will be worth the most to them. If they hire you and all you can say is "I don't know how that works" they probably won't keep you for long.

Good luck, I'll be rooting for you.

 

[DigitalCancer]

Actually Cogman....this was JUST decided a few weeks ago and just finalized as of last Friday.

Our programmer leaving, had nothing to do with the merger actually.

He's been looking to leave for awhile now, but wanted to graduate college first (he graduates in December) and he had just put in his notice of leaving until about 2 months ago, he didn't even know about the merger nor was it even in the cards until just a few weeks ago. Also, only reason he is leaving is he just wants to go back to his home state and that's been the plan ever since he moved here.

 

[Cogman]

Actually Cogman....this was JUST decided a few weeks ago and just finalized as of last Friday.

Our programmer leaving, had nothing to do with the merger actually.

He's been looking to leave for awhile now, but wanted to graduate college first (he graduates in December) and he had just put in his notice of leaving until about 2 months ago, he didn't even know about the merger nor was it even in the cards until just a few weeks ago. Also, only reason he is leaving is he just wants to go back to his home state and that's been the plan ever since he moved here.

Either way, he chose the ideal time to leave the company. The rest of my advice still stands, get to know the system you are working with inside and out. Get to the point where you can write new modules without copying and pasting from some other source. This will provide you with the best chance of keeping your job after the merger (but no guarantees). At very least, it will teach you programming.

Now that you mention their programmer was a college student... The code written might not be "industry" standards. It is very possible that the new company will say "Screw it, we'll write our own" if the code doesn't look up to snuff.

Either way, get your resume polished and references going, just in case.

 

[Modelworks]

Do what you can to adapt but don't kill yourself trying to do it. No car or possession is worth sleeplessness nights or not wanting to go into work. Life is far too short to spend it stressed out. Do your best and that is all you can do. If it isn't enough for someone else then that is their problem. Try to focus on today and not the 'what if' situations that your mind might conjure up.

It might help to take a sheet of paper and list what you need to learn or do to make the changes for the new company. Often we keep things in our head and it gets jumbled up as we try to sort it out. Listing things you need to do will help keep it organized and you can check them off as you complete them.

 

[DigitalCancer]

CogMan: I definitely value your input (since the day I posted you've seemed genuine) and will definitely still follow the advice you've given. I have already updated my resume' as of this morning. Our 'code' is actually a collaboration between our programmer and a company..it's kinda difficult to explain but, we 'mainly' manage the Rule App for our site while this other large company manages all of the coding for the actual site and how it works. Don't get me wrong, there's still code involved dealing with the RuleApp.
I don't, however, know much on this new company's system or anything about how it works yet but I do know that they like our system (which we own, well...not anymore since we sold to them I guess).


Modelworks: Very inspirational words for me. That's what I'm trying to do, unfortunately it's very stressful for me seeing as this was (still could be) a great opportunity for me to finally be able to get my degree but it seems as though every time I get a great opportunity, something happens. I guess I can only hope for the best and just keep doing what I can eh?

 

[Modelworks]

C

this was (still could be) a great opportunity for me to finally be able to get my degree but it seems as though every time I get a great opportunity, something happens. I guess I can only hope for the best and just keep doing what I can eh?

Watch those words like every and finally they only serve to put yourself down. I went through quite a bit of counseling and learned that I was my own worst enemy. I tended to use absolutes like that a lot. Saying things like " I always fail" or "I will never get a promotion" . Absolutes lead us to thinking things are black or white , good or bad, with no gray area in between. Eventually you can end up like I was with thing either going great or terrible, never just an okay day.