These are the things that kill me...

(excuse the title, I've been listening to a lot of The Smiths lately)

We developers require a few things to get our job done: a computer, a decent chair (quickly becoming optional for some folks), and lots and lots of uninterrupted quiet. By 'quiet', I don't mean silence but rather stillness, the absence of stuff being on fire.

That's basically it. Our industry, the software development industry, has a lot of flaws, but the biggest is the lack of the "Big Three" mentioned above. Often we can't get a decent chair, or a decent computer, or even a decent amount of uninterrupted concentration. In addition, there are lots of workplaces that are downright hostile to developers. This is the stuff I want to record here: the frustrating, maddening and sometimes down right stupid things that we put up with all in the name of making a living.

I intend to make this list ongoing. If you want to add something, feel free to shoot me an email at jw@clvr.im.

• Open offices, especially loud, no-privacy-allowed types affairs.

• Desks that face inwards. Even if I'm not surfing YouTube all day, it's a slight psychological stresser to have people able to see your screen.

• "Sales bells". Yeah, ringing a giant bell to announce you made a sell is really going to keep us on track.

• Forced pair programming. Nothing is more uncomfortable than having to stare at someone else's screen when you have no idea what's going on.

• Revolving-door teams. I worked on a team where our most senior guy had 5 months. The CEO simply fired people he didn't like.

• Lack of personal space. I know your startup is strapped for cash, but shoving everyone onto shared tables with less than a foot in either direction isn't cool.

• "Shit's on Fire" syndrome. Having an emergency every hour is not good for concentration.

• "It's just a button". Look, you really don't know what we do...

• 12 hour days. Hours != Productivity. If you can get what needs to be done in 5 hours, whatever whatevs. If it takes you 16, that's your problem.

• We're programmers, not typists. Just because I'm not typing, doesn't mean I'm not working. Some stuff needs to be thought out.