Testing or Learning

  • Comments posted to this topic are about the item Testing or Learning

  • I can relate to this problem.  I have some historical data, probably only about 600 rows, that I have tried at least four times to get structured in a table, entering it manually each time from printed documents and writing test queries to access it.  Just can't seem to get it right.  So far I've learned what doesn't work.

    Rick
    If you do a half-assed job of things, folks will ask 'why did this ass only do half the job?'

  • Whether it feels like a failed experiment or a personal failure has a lot to do with who else observed it. I think it's the nature of IT folks to spend all afternoon long repeating slightly different variations of the same experiment 100 times before we get it right - and enjoy not just the final outcome but the process of getting there. Of course, it's different when someone is looking over your shoulder in real time.

    But, if you're the type of person who sees failed experiments as personal failures, then you're probably not cut out to be in IT.

    Actually, this would be a good candidate interview question.

    "Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the wise. Instead, seek what they sought." - Matsuo Basho

  • skeleton567 wrote:

    I can relate to this problem.  I have some historical data, probably only about 600 rows, that I have tried at least four times to get structured in a table, entering it manually each time from printed documents and writing test queries to access it.  Just can't seem to get it right.  So far I've learned what doesn't work.

    Good news.  I think maybe yesterday's attempt might work!  I'm so confident I even deleted the previous versions!

    Rick
    If you do a half-assed job of things, folks will ask 'why did this ass only do half the job?'

  • Eric M Russell wrote:

    Of course, it's different when someone is looking over your shoulder in real time.

    If someone else wrote the code, it's 'failure'.  If I wrote the code, it's a test.

    Rick
    If you do a half-assed job of things, folks will ask 'why did this ass only do half the job?'

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