• shk (unregistered)

    Nice, spoiling the last episode a week before it airs.

  • Bob (unregistered)

    I was a Bobbie working for a Peter, and this could have been my story. I did the exact same thing.

    I heard after I left, the 'Peter' was laughing about it. He's going to be laughing in that same position for the rest of his career, however. Not qualified to go forward and not good enough to get hired away.

    These peoples' punishment is that, while we may deal with them for a year or less, they have to live with themselves forever.

  • anonymousse (unregistered) in reply to Jimbo
    Jimbo:
    Moe:
    Jimbo:
    For the record, I agree this story sounds a little too made up - but if you don't like it people, fuck off and go somewhere else. You choose to come here and read articles, and if you haven't worked out by now that a LOT of artistic licence is used in almost ALL the stories you must be a lot less intelligent than you seem to think. You do have the freedom not to read articles if they upset you!

    (I'm not as dumb as YOU look)

    What you're saying is just stupid. We know these stories are embellished (not that we have to like it), but the fact that so many people are commenting on it today must mean that there is something tangibly different about the way today's post was written compared to normal. With enough complaints you'd think whoever runs the site would notice and not do the same thing in the future. (I'm completely aware that this is just wishful thinking.)

    By the way, if you happen to know of a site that has similar content to this one but without all the fluff, I'd be there in a heartbeat.

    Who's Stupid?

    YOU made the choice to come here. YOU make the choice to read the article. YOU make the choice whether to return if you don't like it. Given that similar complaints seem to consistently resurface, I'd say it's clear that whoever runs the site doesn't listen. Vote with your feet I say. Instead of visiting daily, come back every two or 3 days - you can see whether the articles are getting better, and whoever runs the site should notice a change in traffic patterns if lots of people are getting upset - if things don't improve, decrease the frequency of your visits again.

    Complaining is almost always pointless. People don't take complaints seriously - as is quite evident here...

    YET YOU'VE ALREADY COMPLAINED TWICE, NICE GOING you AND SORRY CAPS LOCK IS STUCK AND SHIT.

  • Jamm (unregistered)

    I thought it was a good read, told in an interesting way. True she didn't know what Peter was thinking, but that doesn't mean that she didn't perceive it that way.

    Besides, I've not heard one tale of tech woe that didn't suffer from some measure of "artistic license"

    On another note, I'm tired of all these grips about Feature Articles and other non-codesod articles. I hate CodeSOD and skip them, but I don't complain about their existence in every single article. If that is all you have to comment on, then don't comment!

  • Monster (unregistered) in reply to Beep

    <quote>Peter formed a diabolical plan to save Bobbie from her own bad choice of workplaces. He decided to assign her to multiple projects that were considered far too hard for the other wash-outs he worked with, and at the same time to professionally abuse her to encourage her to quit. His carefully judged plan of pushing her to succeed, and then demonstrating that she would be treated badly if she stayed worked. She eventually left the company with glowing references, and a much less rose colored view of corporate life.</quote>

    Who does this guy think Peter is? House?

  • FairyTales (unregistered)

    This story is typical of working for ppl in their late 40s and 50s. They are old and set in their ways, and like to maintain the status quo, instead of pushing the creativity envelope. I always tell myself if i ever act like the "dinosaurs", it's time for a new career, or someone needs to shoot me.

  • wtf (unregistered)
    <quote> This story is typical of working for ppl in their late 40s and 50s. They are old and set in their ways, and like to maintain the status quo, instead of pushing the creativity envelope. I always tell myself if i ever act like the "dinosaurs", it's time for a new career, or someone needs to shoot me. </quote>

    You, my friend, are the larval stage of the people you're complaining about. If you won't listen to people who know things you don't - many of whom are older than you - you're already stuck in your ways, you'll never "push the creativity envelope", and you're just waiting to be a brain-dead middle manager complaining about these young kids who don't know anything. It's sad to see someone already dead and buried at 19. Best of luck, kid. (did I guess your age right? Or did I overshoot? Can't be more than 25...)

  • The Last Interview (unregistered)

    Kind of a flip-side of The Last Interview http://thedailywtf.com/Articles/Hot,-Hot,-Hot!,-The-Last-Interview,-and-A-Wrinkle-in-Time.aspx Bobbie was just letting the clock run out on the 365-day game. Wonder what Jacob thought of Peter for letting her go...

  • David (unregistered)

    Wow, Peter sounds like my current boss.

  • His Irateness (unregistered)

    I've often felt a bit like a Bobbie. Not that I'm a genius, far from it, but I'm generally considered "Overqualified" for positions I can actually find and this happens in a lot of industries. I've come to resent the Peter's of the world as for those of us just trying to start out they're a terrible curse.

    Yes, I might leave in two years, but at least hire me and let me get the experience I need; or even pay the bills. Huge numbers of otherwise intelligent and competent people languish in the pit of unemployment because no-one wants to hire them because either they're "too good" or underqualified because they have no experience.

    I remember a friend of mine trying to apply for a car-manufacturing job. Guy is a genius and can almost reassemble an automatic transmission blindfolded. He scored so well they refused him employment because "he would get bored" despite the fact he was trying to get out of a terrible job for a terrible company under a terrbile boss.

    At least Bobbie got experience with technologies you CAN'T get training for anymore. I've been hugely surprised by how many AS/400 system jobs I've seen floating around on Craig's. Horray for Bobbie!

  • B (unregistered) in reply to highphilosopher

    Especially the ones with made up resumes and The ones looking out for Jobs al the time, the only reason 'Blame the manager'.

  • C (unregistered) in reply to Nexzus

    The real WTF is that Bobbie knew that jacob was bcced. Really over qualified developer..

  • Tollkilla (unregistered) in reply to Zylon

    Use of a Fark thread breaker: -1.

  • Jay (unregistered)

    this situation is sadly much too common.

  • (cs) in reply to TheRealMe
    TheRealMe:
    PS: for those of you telling us what your captchas are, you DO realize anyone programming a spambot would insert those into its dictionary, defeating the purpose of a captcha?

    That is exactly the point of telling what the captchas are. It's a meta-WTF, a running joke if you like, just like the wooden table or Irish girl.

    Perhaps Bobbie is the Irish girl? starts dreaming I want to marry Bobbie and have babies with her... :)

  • (cs) in reply to Amedee
    Amedee:
    TheRealMe:
    PS: for those of you telling us what your captchas are, you DO realize anyone programming a spambot would insert those into its dictionary, defeating the purpose of a captcha?

    That is exactly the point of telling what the captchas are. It's a meta-WTF, a running joke if you like, just like the wooden table or Irish girl.

    Perhaps Bobbie is the Irish girl? starts dreaming I want to marry Bobbie and have babies with her... :)

    Yeah, it's just like a joke without the humor.

  • Josephus (unregistered) in reply to oldami
    oldami:

    And how many CAPTCHA systems allow more than one try? Do you really think spammers use dictionary attacks to crack a CAPTCHA? It would never work, due to the time required, if nothing else.

    This one does for a start and given (a) the captcha is defined in the html and (b) there appear to be about 10 different words on their rotation, it shouldn't really be that difficult or time consuming either.

    I feel very much Vindico now

  • (cs)

    Situations such as the one depicted in the story do exist. They are rare, the enterprise is not a vile place as some people paint it, but it does happen.

  • nobis (unregistered) in reply to Amedee
    Amedee:
    TheRealMe:
    PS: for those of you telling us what your captchas are, you DO realize anyone programming a spambot would insert those into its dictionary, defeating the purpose of a captcha?

    That is exactly the point of telling what the captchas are. It's a meta-WTF, a running joke if you like, just like the wooden table or Irish girl.

    Perhaps Bobbie is the Irish girl? starts dreaming I want to marry Bobbie and have babies with her... :)

    Could you please fax a picture of the Irish girl on a wooden table to my FTP site?

  • Tony (unregistered) in reply to Condor

    I think I've had a number of failed interviews like this - because I was a "whizz kid" once upon a time. Now after years of dead end jobs and minimum-wage junk - I still don't know why.

    How do I present myself so I'll have a chance of even working in my field for a little bit?

  • MV (unregistered) in reply to PinkyAndTheBrainFan187

    Very true, this is more realistic than some of the slightly naive people here. Please do work once in your life at a bank, insurance company or tax office. This may be more likely to happen at a business that does not have IT as it's core business, but where it is seen as a cost. In fact, in such institutions the hired people are there for continuity, and the real work for the most part gets done by contractors from real IT companies.

  • RBoy (unregistered) in reply to Amedee
    Amedee:
    TheRealMe:
    PS: for those of you telling us what your captchas are, you DO realize anyone programming a spambot would insert those into its dictionary, defeating the purpose of a captcha?

    That is exactly the point of telling what the captchas are. It's a meta-WTF, a running joke if you like, just like the wooden table or Irish girl.

    Perhaps Bobbie is the Irish girl? starts dreaming I want to marry Bobbie and have babies with her... :)

    I would like to get into her embedded system....

  • I'm am Paratus (unregistered) in reply to nobis
    nobis:
    Amedee:
    TheRealMe:
    PS: for those of you telling us what your captchas are, you DO realize anyone programming a spambot would insert those into its dictionary, defeating the purpose of a captcha?

    That is exactly the point of telling what the captchas are. It's a meta-WTF, a running joke if you like, just like the wooden table or Irish girl.

    Perhaps Bobbie is the Irish girl? starts dreaming I want to marry Bobbie and have babies with her... :)

    Could you please fax a picture of the Irish girl on a wooden table to my FTP site?
    Sorry. The wooden table doesn't fit my fax machine.

  • katz (unregistered)

    Sounds like good old-fashioned sexism to me. Stuff like that is still far too common.

  • Tim (unregistered)

    Reminds me of Yes Minister Season 3, Episode 1, Equal Opportunities: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0751809/

  • Zergo (unregistered)

    Is that meant to be funny? An asshole with an inferiority complex making life hell for someone much more talented than he? It would have been better if she'd shoved him headfirst into the shredder and taken over the department.

  • Death (unregistered) in reply to iToad
    iToad:
    As a rule, good managers tend to hire Bobbies. Bad managers tend to hire Paula Beans, because they are not a potential threat to their positions.

    The sad fact is that most Bobbies have exactly zero interest in being managers. The organization of people is...painfully illogical for the technical-minded.

    An engineer turned manager is not a good thing and a manager turned engineer is worse. A smart techie avoids this fate.

  • GG (unregistered) in reply to Condor

    You're not, really. If the kid is that good, tell him exactly what's happening and let him make his career decisions based on that. Don't lie to him and jerk him around for months or years.

    If you can't support him politically, make that clear. If you've been told to contain him, say so. Who knows, maybe he'll be able to figure out a way around everything that's thrown his way and actually get something moving - but it's going to be a lot harder, a lot more stressful all around, and take a lot longer if you're lying to him about what the obstacles actually are.

    Bobbies are a fantastic resource, and they're often just as happy to let a helpful manager catch a large chunk of reflected glory and post-project kudos/promotions as they are to run obstructive people through a meat grinder. Stop trying to oppose them and instead give them ALL the information they need to shake things up. Then stand back.

  • Dave T (unregistered) in reply to Aaron

    Dude, get a grip. What is not to be believed? I know a "Bobbi" in real life that was treated even worse than this. Pretty much the same outcome.

    Protip: Just because you know some of the literary buzz words doesn't make you a writer or qualify you to comment on other's techniques.

  • (cs)

    A boss cannot be trusted with email. Even if he's not malevolent, he's probably incompetent, forgetful, disorganized or technically challenged.

    Besides requesting a confirmation reply, about five minutes after sending your boss an email (and no more than an hour after) you need to call him over the telephone and confirm he got it - particularly if he has a history of losing your mail, and extra particularly if he blames you for it.

    It not only prevents tricks like this, but also is perfect for dealing with micromanagers: Keep them busy.

  • taltamir (unregistered) in reply to Aaron
    Aaron:
    Remy Porter:
    Markp:
    Is all the stuff from Peter's POV when Bobbie isn't in the room just made up?... That doesn't happen in real life.

    The core set of events, specifically the hurdles set up to thwart Bobbie, came from the submitter. The goal isn't to just dryly report what the submitter sent in, but to flesh it out into an entertaining narrative.

    So, yes: artistic license was taken. It remains closer to reality than your average Hollywood biopic, so you can take solace in that.

    Artistic license is one thing, but a writer's bread and butter is the audience's willing suspension of disbeleif. When you make the story impossible to believe, it ceaces to be entertaining. Too bad, because I was enjoying most of your posts thus far.

    Protip: The Omniscent Narrator literary device is most effective when the narrator is established as reliable and unbiased. Otherwise, tell the story from the real POV and don't try to cement fantasies as fact.

    Exactly, the only thing I was thinking while reading this is "how does the author know this?" The author of this story either made up large portions of it, is god, or is a self loathing peter.

  • Chad (unregistered) in reply to Condor

    I hope if my resume ever crosses your desk you will do me that favor as well.

  • Logan (unregistered)

    What a douche...

    Glad she got bored and left, I hate working for people like that!

  • Greg (unregistered) in reply to Someone who can't be bothered to login from work

    He should work for a bio-fuels company.

  • Greg (unregistered) in reply to Someone who can't be bothered to login from work
    Someone who can't be bothered to login from work:
    So...

    Bobbie: Competent, adaptable and possibly worth her weight in gold. Peter: Pitiful cock who needs to be fired - out of a canon - and not even worth his weight in shit.

    He should work for a bio-fuels company.

    Makes more sense if I quote instead of reply.

  • A Bobbie (unregistered) in reply to Condor

    Turning someone down for a job is not doing someone a favour, no-one is ever going to say "I owe you one for that mate, I dunno what I'd have done if you hadn't pulled out all the stops to keep me unemployed!"

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