Post by @AmenZwa@mathstodon.xyz

2026-09-26 18:54 UTC

@darkuncle@infosec.exchange @skewray@mathstodon.xyz Ya know mate, back in the early 80s, most CS-trained programmers were “generalists”, simply because general, system programming was a “specialist” domain. That broad-based, general exposure was particularly valuable to young practitioners who, as a specialist in later life, can draw from a mass of past experiences. Today, those who portray themselves as broad-based practitioners use the label “full-stack”—yeah, web only; go figure. Once, on behalf of a client, I interviewed a tech lead candidate, who touted himself as a “one-stop shop”, “know everything expert” in all things systems design and development. I always start interviews by asking questions with easy, simple answers, so as to acclimate the candidate to the process and to establish a rapport with him. Given the system-oriented nature of the work, I asked this senior-level candidate to describe at a high level how a computer boots up, willing to accept even a hand-wavy response, so as to move the process along. I got a blank stare.🤦‍♂️

Replies (4)

@darkuncle@infosec.exchange 2026-09-26 19:10

@AmenZwa@mathstodon.xyz @skewray@mathstodon.xyz I have thought about this a lot over the last 10 to 15 years; in defense of the new generation, the scope of technology in the world is so much broader than it was 25 or 30 years ago that I’m not sure it is still possible to be a generalist in the same way that those of us who started in the 80s or 90s had to be out of necessity

Open ##4860614
@paculino@tech.lgbt 2026-09-27 03:42

@AmenZwa@mathstodon.xyz @darkuncle@infosec.exchange @skewray@mathstodon.xyz was that the worst instance at least?

Open ##5366380
@lispi314@udongein.xyz 2026-09-27 04:04

@AmenZwa@mathstodon.xyz @darkuncle@infosec.exchange @skewray@mathstodon.xyz > Today, those who portray themselves as broad-based practitioners use the label “full-stack”—yeah, web only; go figure. That annoyed me greatly when I got hired for one. I meant to acquire more experience with system programming and native GUI work. Not "full LAMP stack + javascript" (what it really was is mostly backend server application and frontend javascript, rather off from my expectation).

Open ##5366383
@darkling@mstdn.social 2026-09-27 11:26

@AmenZwa@mathstodon.xyz @darkuncle@infosec.exchange @skewray@mathstodon.xyz I've had people interviewing for senior dev positions who failed utterly with a pretty basic question, like "count the number of each type of character in a string". Like, couldn't even start.

Open ##5366385