On Sat, Feb 2, 2013 at 6:26 PM, Michael Christensen wrote: > > I admit, there may be every chance that the reason why I don't agree with > you is that A) I am not used to an environment in which developers develop > locally
I'd say that's a really good reason for you to have previously not agreed with the notion of a developer being able to configure his/her own **development** environment - you had (apparently) never seen or heard of it before. However, I think that's a terrible excuse to completely discount the notion now that it has been presented to you. > or (perhaps more frighteningly) B) I am just not very bright. > I doubt that. Lazy, perhaps? I might could see how you could say that, but my bet is you're not exactly "stoopid". ;-) > > I am always willing to learn and expand my horizon though, so could you > perhaps briefly explaine, why you consider it necessary for a developer to > be able to set up sites on an Apache or IIS? (I assume it's not just for > the sheer practicality of it - so that you don't have to wait around for > the IT dept.) > In my opinion, it is unthinkable to call oneself a developer and yet have no clue how to configure your own ***development*** environment. The key here is **********DEVELOPMENT********** environment. Like Ray, I would never hire - or recommend for hire - someone to fill a developer's role if they were unable to configure their own **development** environment. There are many, many, many reasons for that, and saving the IT department time is probably least among those reasons. - To be a developer, one has to be able to configure a **development** environment for oneself to work in. If one can't do that, then one can't develop. Development _requires_ basic understanding of how things work. It doesn't matter if you're talking web development, desktop development, rocket development, landscape development, or any other kind of development. Basic understanding of the environment one is developing for is absolutely required. - If someone calls themselves a "developer", then I fully EXPECT them to not just copy/paste/churn "code" for whatever project I've placed them on, but to also tinker and play and be in a constant state of learning, even on their own time. If they aren't doing that, then they are simply here to be babysat and collect a check. I don't believe in babysitting or paying for people to be babysat. :-) - One cannot truly progress as a developer if one cannot build their own **development** environment. If they're dependent upon someone else to configure their **development** environment, then they're stuck with whatever they're given and will never venture outside that to see what else is out there. And I assure you, "seeing what else is out there" is paramount to growing and becoming better at what you do. I tried to boil it down in just a few points, but there are many reasons why one MUST be able to configure their own **development** environment. This thread is filled with them. By the way, hopefully readers of this post have noticed a recurring theme: **development** environment. In no way, shape, or form, do I expect a developer to be able to set up and monitor/maintain a _production_ environment. That is an entirely different animal, and is best left to those who specialize in (and enjoy!) the server management of things. Having said that, I believe that it is a natural progression for a developer to learn how to set up and maintain a server. I just don't expect them to do that as part of their development duties. HTH ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Order the Adobe Coldfusion Anthology now! http://www.amazon.com/Adobe-Coldfusion-Anthology/dp/1430272155/?tag=houseoffusion Archive: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-talk/message.cfm/messageid:354246 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-talk/subscribe.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/groups/cf-talk/unsubscribe.cfm
