System programmers vs. administrators

From: der Mouse <mouse_at_Rodents.Montreal.QC.CA>
Date: Sun Jan 18 03:12:28 2004

> As the discussion progressed, we decided that there are two types of
> advanced computer users -system programmers and system
> administrators.

There are. (I'm not convinced there aren't other types.)

> That in itself is debatable but where our discussion became bogged
> down was when we tried to decide which user was left brain, and which
> was right brain. [...]

Here's my take on it. (Note that, for the sake of ease of discussion,
I will accept without further comment your characterization of the
brain hemispheres, though I am not convinced it's really correct.)

Personally I'm not convinced that either of those two is any inherently
more left-brained or right-brained than the other. A heavily lopsided
person can be competent but not brilliant at either one, regardless of
which hemisphere is dominant and which sort of person is under
discussion...but to be really outstanding, I think, requires a
significant contribution from both the left brain and the right brain:
each is both an art and a science, and to shine at either requires
being both artist and scientist.

For all that, though, they are very different disciplines, and it's
entirely possible to be a stellar sysadmin without being a more than
reasonably competent programmer, and that much only in a certain class
of languages; and it's entirely possible to be a stellar programmer
without being an even minimally competent sysadmin. (Yes, this is not
symmetric.)

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Received on Sun Jan 18 2004 - 03:12:28 GMT