@ professional Programmers - still programming on weekends?
Since I work from home and charge by the hour, most of my inclination to code is spent working until I get bored each day. However I do participate in programming contests since these are a nice quick way to solve some problems without having to take on a long project.
I work fulltime doing C/C++ coding for a company that makes shrinkwrap software, so its a relatively low stress job and it affords me the chance to experiment a bit and try new things rather than just throw LOC at problem i've dealth with before. I also only have a few fixed hours a day, so I don't necessarily work for 8 hours (or more) in a row.
Because of that flexibility, I probably work on hobby game programming over 20 hours a week, and not just on weekends. I am always motivated, but sometimes get sidetracked with more alluring hobby (non-programming) projects for short times.
I have some advantages over the average person, though. I am single and work close to or sometimes from home, I have a roommate that shares the housework, and I have no fear of burning out as a programmer since I could switch fields and utilize my other degree if I did. I am also wonderfully insane.
Because of that flexibility, I probably work on hobby game programming over 20 hours a week, and not just on weekends. I am always motivated, but sometimes get sidetracked with more alluring hobby (non-programming) projects for short times.
I have some advantages over the average person, though. I am single and work close to or sometimes from home, I have a roommate that shares the housework, and I have no fear of burning out as a programmer since I could switch fields and utilize my other degree if I did. I am also wonderfully insane.
I'm writing code in my non-work time whenever I can. Before XNA Game Studio came out I was getting frustrated with trying to do games in my spare time. Now I can't wait to get home and start working on games.
Yes and no. I play around with different things at home still, but not at the same rate I used to. I also tend to play with smaller projects, since I know the chances of completing a larger project are small, due to time constraints. I'm usually just playing around to learn more now, rather than complete something. That being said, as part of a team, I would consider working on something larger. As one person, completing a large project when you can put in 20 hours on a good week and much less on a bad one, isn't usually feasible.
When I first started my job last year, none of my spare time was spent programming. I wanted to get away from the computer and be a little social butterfly, let the wings flap free, and whatnot.
Now, though, since I'm kind of in a transitional period after college where a hefty majority of my friends have moved away I'm devoting most of my time to "self-betterment" as a game designer/programmer. I'm close to finishing my first game (as a side project) and, once that is done, I'll start-up two more side-projects (one with another person or two and one by myself). Despite the fact that I'm, essentially, working a majority of my time it never really feels like work. The side-projects, in particular, always feel like something I want to do rather than something I have to get done. And, if I'm not in the mood to work, I'll just play one of the many games I'm currently playing.
I like my system.
Now, though, since I'm kind of in a transitional period after college where a hefty majority of my friends have moved away I'm devoting most of my time to "self-betterment" as a game designer/programmer. I'm close to finishing my first game (as a side project) and, once that is done, I'll start-up two more side-projects (one with another person or two and one by myself). Despite the fact that I'm, essentially, working a majority of my time it never really feels like work. The side-projects, in particular, always feel like something I want to do rather than something I have to get done. And, if I'm not in the mood to work, I'll just play one of the many games I'm currently playing.
I like my system.
I still program at home even though I program for a living. The things that I program are vastly different however. At work I write utilities, and at home I write physics-related stuff. This is how it's always been for me though... I started in computers unpacking boxes and installing Windows, and doing network-related stuff at home. Then I got a job doing network-related stuff, and began coding at home. Then I got a job coding, and began studying physics at home.
It's definitely dropped off since I've started work as a programmer, although I find time to do minigames, and week long sprints. It doesn't help though that games like Team Fortress 2 and Super Smash Bros Brawl came out and are eating at the majority of my free time.
Well for me, I try to squeeze it in when I can. But I have a wife I love to death and I barely get to spend quality time with her, so game programming is typically put on the back-burner. My day typically goes:
- Program for work
- Come home and take care of household stuff
- My wife comes home and we cook/eat dinner
- We go over the "business" side of the marriage (finances, errands, etc)
By the time we get to do anything romantic there's only a two or three hours left in the day (if that), which typically turns into watch TV until bed (not very romantic). Weekends typically involve visiting other people or working on the house.
So it's hard to get a solid block of hours to program just for fun. I don't even want to think about how much harder it'll be when I have kids.
- Program for work
- Come home and take care of household stuff
- My wife comes home and we cook/eat dinner
- We go over the "business" side of the marriage (finances, errands, etc)
By the time we get to do anything romantic there's only a two or three hours left in the day (if that), which typically turns into watch TV until bed (not very romantic). Weekends typically involve visiting other people or working on the house.
So it's hard to get a solid block of hours to program just for fun. I don't even want to think about how much harder it'll be when I have kids.
My job is part programming (I do a lot of work with JScript and VBScript because apparently God hates me...) and part automating software stuff (like automating a full installation of Vista plus a bunch of extra stuff). I still do tons of programming outside. It might just be because I'm starved for a good language after work but it might just be that I have a ridiculous love of programming. Even if my job was full time programming (which it will most likely become in a few months), I think I would still program outside of work.
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