The Graphing Calculator Story is yet another tale of developer obsession that I can use to show non-coders as an example of, well, I don’t know what, exactly. Maybe just an example of things I think are cool. Synopsis: contractor at Apple finishes his term with his project cancelled, but decides to finish his application anyway. Hilarity ensues.
I asked my friend Greg Robbins to help me. His contract in another division at Apple had just ended, so he told his manager that he would start reporting to me. She didn’t ask who I was and let him keep his office and badge. In turn, I told people that I was reporting to him. Since that left no managers in the loop, we had no meetings and could be extremely productive. We worked twelve hours a day, seven days a week. Greg had unlimited energy and a perfectionist’s attention to detail. He usually stayed behind closed doors programming all day, while I spent much of my time talking with other engineers. Since I had asked him to help as a personal favor, I had to keep pace with him. Thanks to an uncurtained east-facing window in my bedroom, I woke with the dawn and usually arrived ten minutes before Greg did. He would think I had been working for hours and feel obliged to work late to stay on par. I in turn felt obliged to stay as late as he did. This feedback loop created an ever-increasing spiral of productivity.
Nobody at my current job feels compelled to do this kind of thing, and I’m not saying that I would do it either, but the idea of working somewhere where people might attempt such a feat is appealing.
Interestingly, this is the fourth “behind the scenes” story of software that I’ve read recently. The other three were also about Apple software. Are there any stories like this for Microsoft, Channel 9 notwithstanding?
(Via Slashdot.)
Post a Comment