I don't like categorizations, and I "super" don't like it when people hoist a flag to identify themselves and "how they roll" in an exclusive way. When I first heard the term "Alt.Net" I thought it was funny - it made me laugh. Then I read the "Hot or Not" Alt.Net post from Roy Osherove and I remember thinking to myself "oh nooooes! Not a manifesto!".
No offense Roy - but this is the kind of thing that puts up the "Cool Kids" kind of fence that drives me nuts.
In fact, that's the term I've been using for Alt.Netters - the "Cool Kids" :). Can't help it - it just seems to fit :).
This Isn't Flame Bait
To be sure, we all like to identify ourselves with different groups. It's human nature. The pathetic thing is when people go out of their way to create ridiculous categorizations and then dump people in them arbitrarily.
I read Jeff Atwood's post the other day about the two-types of programmers and all I could do was shake my head. Usually Jeff's post are something we should all aspire too. The man is a gem, and probably the poster child of how to blog.
I'm not trying to take a swipe here; I just really dislike divisive posts, in any fashion. I didn't get past the first sentence. I literally clicked away, knowing that what was coming was yet another summation of our industry, and the millions of people in it, wrapped up nicely into little buckets for easy digestion:
Contrary to myth, there aren't fourteen types of programmers. There are really only two, as Ben Collins-Sussman reminds us...
Seems I'm not the only one to disagree - Jeff got some pretty aggressive responses:
There are really only 2 types of people in the world: those who make ridiculous generalizations... and those who don't
I'm not certain what Jeff was trying to say with his post (it's probably because I didn't read it all) - friends have tried to point out that he was just trying to muster some energy around blogging and getting people to look outside their dreary existence inside their 80% world. Sounds good - just came off a little "Blogging From The Mount"-ish.
It was well-intended and Jeff did follow up with a sort of "you're all Cool Kids cause you read my blog" response, which made me feel lots better :).
I'm not attacking Jeff - it was a good post and I know what he meant. I think his idea just got away from him a bit (as he pointed out). It happens.
And Now Back To Our Point - Or Why This Post Isn't About Jeff Atwood
It's the Cool Kid thing - it grates on me after a while and I think there's an element of this in the extreme in the Alt.Net camp that, to me, is getting a little obnoxious.
Overall I really like the Alt.Net concept - which is basically saying "there's more to geek life than what's in the blue Microsoft box" - or put another way: "I can install Linux!". I don't mean to get negative on Alt.Net, and I'll apologize if I'm offending any of the Cook Kids right now.
Alt.Net is all about the options out there, and pushing yourself to think outside of Microsoft toolset. But there is an undercurrent of crankiness out there that's sabotaging this lovely effort, and I think it's time for those guys to consider what Microsoft is doing here, and maybe try supporting it a bit - cause the cranky thing is getting a little boring.
In fact I think people are starting to feel the same as me - isn't there a way to somehow filter out the negativity? At this point it's just boring. How many more times can you read about why M$ is evil and as Sam Ramji put it to me one day (yes I stole this from him for a post title):
Oh look! Darth Vader's wearing black today! (yawn)
So - Alt.Crank guys - what would it take to make you happy? What if you could actually go in and change things? It's not as crazy an idea as it seems...
Am I A Glory Hound?
I spose you're all wondering why I care so much about these guys "blogging bile". The truth is that I'm now on the inside - and I really care. I have a chance to do some good work, and make some changes, and I'd like it if people recognized that Microsoft it willing/wanting to move in a great direction here.
I've already started pushing things internally a bit - so much so that I keep waiting for the phone to ring and Shawn says to me "we need to discuss a few things". That hasn't happened (they're very, very patient) and not only are they patient - they are listening and thinking about the ideas that are being offered by people like me, Phil, and Scott Hanselman.
So, here I am, flexxing my reputation and career to make a difference in a company which I've based my living on. Are YOU willing to do the same?
