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Los Banos?

2013-06-21 18:48:10.467455+00 by ebradway 12 comments

Please do not try to recruit me as a Ruby on Rails Programmer based on my LinkedIn profile (or my resume). I have programmed in Ruby on Rails but it's like claiming I'm fluent in Spanish because I know how to say, "Donde esta los baños?" Any technical recruiter worth their salt should be able to tell the difference. And no, I will not recommend any of my friends.

[ related topics: Software Engineering ]

comments in ascending chronological order (reverse):

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-21 19:01:56.628264+00 by: Dan Lyke

I love that my highest endorsement on LinkedIn is for Python...

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-21 19:30:03.674589+00 by: markd

I'm disappointed your okra folding skills aren't as appreciated.

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-21 21:20:10.30417+00 by: Dan Lyke

Me too. Unfortunately, though, the number of employers seeking okra folding proficiency doesn't seem to be very high.

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-21 23:53:27.721564+00 by: Jack William Bell [edit history]

I always refer to myself as an 'old C guy'. From which potential employers infer that I am either currently or potentially proficient in any other programming language under the sun. They are usually right, but I don't know if their line of reasoning is valid.

I mean, its like saying "He is fluent in Latin, so he must be conversent in Russian and Japanese as well."

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-22 02:24:11.8415+00 by: markd

I figure because the old school C folk are comfortable at the bottom of the stack, it's easier to do work higher up the abstraction chain than it is to go the other direction.

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-22 06:14:53.350898+00 by: ebradway

I also find it funny that recruiters contact me for "Firmware Engineer" positions. In high school (1988), I worked at a shop doing some Intel 8051 hacking. That hardly qualifies me as a firmware engineer 25 years later. But they try...

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-22 10:44:01.851618+00 by: stevesh

I'm not a programmer, but it sure seems odd to me in this economy to read about folks complaining about being offered jobs.

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-22 14:38:59.006675+00 by: Jack William Bell

stevesh: It isn't true for every programmer either. But once you get into the system with certain skills it kind of gets redonkulous.

Good reason to become a programmer, neh?

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-22 19:30:50.079391+00 by: TheSHAD0W

It's even worse when employers demand people have five years experience in a language or framework that's only been around for three...

#Comment Re: made: 2013-06-22 20:39:03.027865+00 by: Larry Burton

Stevesh, this economy is an odd one. Three years ago jobs for industrial controls engineers could not be had. Two years ago a dam broke and now I don't go a week without at least two calls from headhunters seeking someone with those skills. The job market is not bad for all disciplines, just the semi-skilled ones.

#Comment Re: made: 2013-07-17 21:17:23.549849+00 by: ebradway

Evidently a recruiter got a hit for a Ruby on Rails developer at Groupon from David Heinemeir Hanson's profile on Github. David invented Ruby on Rails. It's kind of like trying to hire Henry Ford as a mechanic at a garage... Not only did the recruiter not bother to grasp David's level of Ruby on Rails experience, but he/she failed to figure out that David is not shy with his opinion of Groupon as a company.

#Comment Re: made: 2013-07-17 21:50:07.86599+00 by: Jack William Bell

Hah ebradway! That's is freaking HILARIOUS!

I wonder if Linus Torvalds ever gets recruiter calls for Linux admin jobs?