Part of it is finding a good opportunity. My current employer was able to look past my lack of training in the industry to see that I was a good candidate for the position. I feel fortunate that my boss hired me with that kind of perspective as it seems pretty rare.
And on the topic of university and education; if you can combine that thirst for knowledge in a good educational setting, it can be nirvana. Reading through the course calender is like walking through a Candy-shop as a child. Sitting in discussions about topics that have kept you up at night is an amazing experience. University certainly isn't for everyone, but there are good reasons it is valued.
As an intense autodidact who rarely finds my energy for learning eclectic topics (virtual worlds, electronic music production, procedural texture creation, domestic automation, typography, VHS artifacts, neuroscience, etc.) matched with a likeminded soul — but am exceedingly grateful when I do — this does look like a "wonderful read". I'll check it out further on Amazon.
James sounds like an exception, so this is definitely not applicable to everyone, but those who can relate (and may feel doubt if they're following the right path) will surely leap up and do *jazz hands* like myself. After all, exceptions are exceptional.
We had a few other young managers without a college degree when we started.
I was thankful that HP let me design calculators because I had the ability to, even though I had no degree.
Getting that 'paper' does give you a place and time to develop and learn on your own at the same time.
And getting my degree later on gave me a place to identify myself with. It's like the 'paper' is a symbol of who I am more than testimony that I'm smart enough to do a job. It's something desirable for emotional reasons, in other words.
As great as these stories are, I think people seem to forget that the world was a MUCH different place 20-30 years ago. Might I remind you that 10 years ago, similar stories from Google and Yahoo! were from PhD candidate students, not high school dropouts.
Ugh. I don't think reading this would really encourage me to bring up those straight Cs.
The institutions established by our society might suck, but only those who manage to get through them will ever be in a position to put an end to them.
@ReconToaster misses garnett :(: I'm adding this to my Amazon wishlist and will pick it up once I finish my degree. I already did one round of drop-out-of-college-and-land-a-professional-career and did well by it, but I need the stupid piece of paper this time.
I'd love to play with a DSLR, but I just can't justify it... I know how to set the manual settings, but for the cost of the cheapest one here, I could get a Sony DSC-WX1 that does great night shots, automatic panoramas, and most importantly, it's small enough I could have it on me when I need to take a picture.
I'm not coming out against DSLR or anything, but for my uses... they're just so huge I'd never have it with me, and the price is so high I couldn't buy one for non-professional use.
@fuchikoma: Heh, I've noticed that too about cameras. I can never be arsed to bring it with me. (I have a Panasonic-something-or-the-other better than your average compact camera but not as good as a DSLR making it pretty big, but not too big)
@fuchikoma: most of us DSLR users have a P&S to go along. I take both on vacations, and the PS still gets plenty of use. But when you start looking at pictures from your trip when you get home, the DSLR advantages are quite clear and makes me wonder why I didnt lug the better camera around that day.
But yes, the new Sony WX1 is quite amazing in low light and panoramics... havent seen 100% crops side by side tho, I just toyed with one at a friends house.
@irfan: That would be ideal... but I'm not a photographer, so I'm afraid I can only drop $400 on a camera every 5 years or so.
To me, I'd get a DSLR for more artistic effects like depth of field, very long exposures, bokeh, or HDR, but a while back a friend and I were comparing our cameras - he had some kind of 7MP Olympus DSLR and I had a 7MP Sony DSC-P150. In extreme darkness you could see the sensor noise on my camera, and he could just set a very long exposure, so that was a clear win for him if we were printing hi-res posters or competing in a photo competition.
But ultimately, while he's very happy with it because he does make use of all the features, when we compare ordinary shots, his camera's pics look 3-5% better, but his camera cost about 220% as much before lenses. I'd love to have all the manual features he does, but I just can't pay that when I take about 50 shots a year and keep about half that many...
I considered putting something about how "The Best Video Game Console: Xbox 360" made me let out a heavy sigh of disappointment. But then I decided not to. Oh, wait a minute...
@VenomIreland: well, mostly because they provide no explanation in the article proper (didn't check the link). The ps3 has seen some incredible first party titles this year, has BD built in, free online network, introduced slimmer hardware, lower price point, netflix (with no Gold subscription required). Not to mention that ps3 reliability trumps the xbox all day (RROD's are reportedly less frequent, but failure rates are still high). Add banning for modded xbox's, and I find it hard to argue xbox's continued superiority just because of a slightly larger gamer community and left 4 dead 2 (which admittedly, I'd love to have on the PS 3).
01:04 AM
And on the topic of university and education; if you can combine that thirst for knowledge in a good educational setting, it can be nirvana. Reading through the course calender is like walking through a Candy-shop as a child. Sitting in discussions about topics that have kept you up at night is an amazing experience. University certainly isn't for everyone, but there are good reasons it is valued.
12:16 AM
James sounds like an exception, so this is definitely not applicable to everyone, but those who can relate (and may feel doubt if they're following the right path) will surely leap up and do *jazz hands* like myself. After all, exceptions are exceptional.
I give thanx, James and Gizmodo!
12:16 AM
I was thankful that HP let me design calculators because I had the ability to, even though I had no degree.
Getting that 'paper' does give you a place and time to develop and learn on your own at the same time.
And getting my degree later on gave me a place to identify myself with. It's like the 'paper' is a symbol of who I am more than testimony that I'm smart enough to do a job. It's something desirable for emotional reasons, in other words.
12:02 AM
11/26/09
The institutions established by our society might suck, but only those who manage to get through them will ever be in a position to put an end to them.
11/26/09
11/26/09
11/26/09
I'm not coming out against DSLR or anything, but for my uses... they're just so huge I'd never have it with me, and the price is so high I couldn't buy one for non-professional use.
11/26/09
11/26/09
11/26/09
But yes, the new Sony WX1 is quite amazing in low light and panoramics... havent seen 100% crops side by side tho, I just toyed with one at a friends house.
11/26/09
To me, I'd get a DSLR for more artistic effects like depth of field, very long exposures, bokeh, or HDR, but a while back a friend and I were comparing our cameras - he had some kind of 7MP Olympus DSLR and I had a 7MP Sony DSC-P150. In extreme darkness you could see the sensor noise on my camera, and he could just set a very long exposure, so that was a clear win for him if we were printing hi-res posters or competing in a photo competition.
But ultimately, while he's very happy with it because he does make use of all the features, when we compare ordinary shots, his camera's pics look 3-5% better, but his camera cost about 220% as much before lenses. I'd love to have all the manual features he does, but I just can't pay that when I take about 50 shots a year and keep about half that many...
11/26/09
11/26/09
11/26/09
11/26/09
But the best entry-level DSLR is a used one Craigslist, because you can get a body and lens for under $300.
Of course, if someone wants to buy me a T1i to replace my XT, I won't complain.
11/26/09
11/25/09
11/25/09
Best Gadget Site: [www.gizmodo.com]
11/25/09
11/25/09