From: Larz on
I have a pretty good idea on this, I may not be typical.

I basically was never convinced that work of any sort could be fun up
to my early 20's. No one ever convinced me of that or ever thought it
important enough to ever bring up the issue of whether work should be
enjoyable or not.

I was a paper boy, dishwasher, worked on farms, retail stores etc. I
always have enjoyed being a musician I would say, but even that can be
stifling depending on the situation. At one point in 1983 or so I
decided I needed a career and took a COBOL class which to my surprise
I found software interesting. After nearly flunking out of high
school, I got a degree in CS and made the honor roll and did very
well. When i started my career as a programmer, I discovered that
managers, co workers and the business world at times can take alot of
the fun out of it. On the other hand, this led me to discover
meditation and the spiritual side of life as the stress and
frustration inspired me to take up meditating on biblical psalms,
buddhist meditation and a few yogi masters ..


From: Thomas 'PointedEars' Lahn on
Malcolm McLean wrote:

> Strictly a "professional" is someone who is a member of a professional
> body which regulates itself and has the right to control entry to the
> profession. For instnace I can't simply buy scalpels and antiseptic
> and set myself up as a brain surgeon - I have to go throguh the
> British Medical Association before they'll let me chop people up. the
> same is true for lawyers, accountants, and some other more obscure
> niches.
>
> Most people aren't professionals, and the word has become misused to
> mean 'skilled workers with high standards'. Bascially employers want
> the advantages of professional status without conferring on their
> employees the control that is the natural concomitant.
>
> Computer programmers are rarely professionals in the true sense, but
> ususally professional in the bastardised sense of the term.

Your notion of "computer programmer" is a bit outdated to say the least.
This thread was about "software professionals".

You might also want to update other parts of your knowledge:

,-<http://www.britannica.com/bps/dictionary?query=professional&header_go=>
|
| Main Entry: ¹pro·fes·sion·al
| Pronunciation: \prə-ˈfesh-nəl, -ˈfe-shə-nəl\
| Function: adjective
| Date: 1606
|
| 1 a: of, relating to, or characteristic of a profession[1]
| b: engaged in one of the learned professions
| c (1): characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical
| standards of a profession
| (2): exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally
| businesslike manner in the workplace
|
| 2 a: participating for gain or livelihood in an activity or field of
| endeavor often engaged in by amateurs <a ∼ golfer>
| b: having a particular profession as a permanent career
| <a ∼ soldier>
| c: engaged in by persons receiving financial return <∼ football>
|
| 3: following a line of conduct as though it were a profession
| <a ∼ patriot>
| — pro·fess·ion·ally adverb
|
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------
|
| Main Entry: ²professional
| Function: noun
| Date: 1811
|
| one that is professional; especially: one that engages in a pursuit or
| activity professionally

[1]
| Main Entry:pro·fes·sion
| Pronunciation: \prə-ˈfe-shən\
| Function: noun
| Etymology: Middle English professioun, from Anglo-French profession,
| from Late Latin & Latin; Late Latin profession-, professio,
| from Latin, public declaration, from profitēri
| Date: 13th century
|
| 1: the act of taking the vows of a religious community
| 2: an act of openly declaring or publicly claiming a belief, faith,
| or opinion : protestation
| 3: an avowed religious faith
| 4 a: a calling requiring specialized knowledge and often long and
| intensive academic preparation
| b: a principal calling, vocation, or employment
| c: the whole body of persons engaged in a calling

So much for "bastardised".


F'up2 poster

PointedEars
--
var bugRiddenCrashPronePieceOfJunk = (
navigator.userAgent.indexOf('MSIE 5') != -1
&& navigator.userAgent.indexOf('Mac') != -1
) // Plone, register_function.js:16
From: Ivan Marsh on
Malcolm McLean wrote:

> On Feb 8, 1:43 am, James Kanze <james.ka...(a)gmail.com> wrote:
>> On Feb 5, 3:14 pm, Patricia Shanahan <p...(a)acm.org> wrote:
>>
>> [...]
>>
>> > That said, by definition professionals are, to some extent, in
>> > it for the money. If they were not, they would be amateurs as
>> > I am now. How that is balanced against interesting work,
>> > physical working conditions, status, etc. varies.
>>
>> I'm not sure if the word "professional" has the same conotations
>> in English as it does in French, but from the French meaning, I
>> don't think you can be truely a "professional" if you're only in
>> it for the money.  "Professional" implies being paid for what
>> you do, but it also implies a certain degree of personal
>> standards with regards to quality and such---a "professional"
>> will take pride in his work.
>>
> Strictly a "professional" is someone who is a member of a professional
> body which regulates itself and has the right to control entry to the
> profession. For instnace I can't simply buy scalpels and antiseptic
> and set myself up as a brain surgeon - I have to go throguh the
> British Medical Association before they'll let me chop people up. the
> same is true for lawyers, accountants, and some other more obscure
> niches.
>
> Most people aren't professionals, and the word has become misused to
> mean 'skilled workers with high standards'. Bascially employers want
> the advantages of professional status without conferring on their
> employees the control that is the natural concomitant.
>
> Computer programmers are rarely professionals in the true sense, but
> ususally professional in the bastardised sense of the term.

The 1950's were totally awesome.

--
"All right, all right, if it will make you happy, I will overthrow society."
  - Philip J. Fry
From: Lew on
Ivan Marsh wrote:
> The 1950's [sic] were totally awesome.

Oh, yeah - the twin evils of McCarthyism and Communism. Racism. Sexism. The
Cold War. Superpowers playing chess with smaller countries. Wars everywhere.
Dictators. Massive stockpiling of nuclear and chemical weapons. Rapine of
the planet. The birth of AIDS. Hideous fashions.

Totally awesome.

--
Lew
From: Ivan Marsh on
Lew wrote:

> Ivan Marsh wrote:
>> The 1950's [sic] were totally awesome.
>
> Oh, yeah - the twin evils of McCarthyism and Communism. Racism. Sexism.
> The
> Cold War. Superpowers playing chess with smaller countries. Wars
> everywhere.
> Dictators. Massive stockpiling of nuclear and chemical weapons. Rapine
> of
> the planet. The birth of AIDS. Hideous fashions.
>
> Totally awesome.

The complete lack of sarcasm...


--
"All right, all right, if it will make you happy, I will overthrow society."
  - Philip J. Fry