C# job in Canada

[Zetetic]

Have I bluffed my way into a dead end?

I suppose that depends what you want from life. I'm a data analyst, albeit with a fancier title and I have no desire to go any further up the greasy pole (not least because it largely demands managing other people).

Are you bored, poor or both?

[seepage]

I'm amazed there isn't a package for everything now. We thought we needed bespoke forestry software but ended up using sap instead.

[seepage]

I'm a data analyst, albeit with a fancier title

At my work, junior ones were titled 'Squirrels' and seniors 'Ninjas' - are you a 'Ninja'?

[Cuellar]

I suppose that depends what you want from life. I'm a data analyst, albeit with a fancier title and I have no desire to go any further up the greasy pole (not least because it largely demands managing other people).

Are you bored, poor or both?

Mainly bored. I quite enjoy the coding, making stuff side of the job so I have absolutely no objection to retraining - I just can't afford to. At least, not to the level that seems to be required if I want to move somewhere else. Which I do.

If we weren't on the precipice of crashing out of the EU I'd go over there and do a course for about a tenth of the cost.

[Twed]

At my work, junior ones were titled 'Squirrels' and seniors 'Ninjas' - are you a 'Ninja'?

Fuck. Can I hug you? Somebody has hurt you.

[seepage]

^ I'm OK, thanks. I stumbled around in my reading glasses all the time so I couldn't spot the other nonsence on the walls. Couldn't see Sky News as a consequence, but that's probably for the best.

[Sebastian Cobb]

Did you fall in the ballpit? I can only assume the sort of place that calls people 'ninjas' has a ballpit.

[seepage]

^ no,  but did once get thrown into the Japanese garden.

[Twed]

Did you fall in the ballpit? I can only assume the sort of place that calls people 'ninjas' has a ballpit.

I'd quite like to start a support thread for anybody who worked as a contractor for London-based design agencies. Some people here must have done gigs at some of the places I've been subjected to.

[Sebastian Cobb]

I had none of that, but I did work for CGI for a bit after they took Logica over, which is probably one of the worst examples of North American corporate cult bullshit going, combined with the idea that all programmers strive to reach the heady heights of middle management.

[Mrs Wogans lemon drizzle]

Here's a question - my job is 'Data Analyst', I have no quantifiable experience in anything scientific/statistical/codey beyond an A Level in Maths about 16 years ago. I have done degrees in Eng.Lit.

I did an SQL course (3 days worth) about 3 years ago, and have been googling everything else.

Have I bluffed my way into a dead end? All job adverts I see ask for degrees in maths/computer science/something numerate. Aside from doing another degree (obviously can't afford it), what the fuck do I do? Sack it all off and go back to...er...poetry?

ffs.

Genuine question - what does a data analyst job involve then?

[Cuellar]

Fuckin... Looking at spreadsheets and writing stored procedures in SQL and making silly little macros in Visual Basic so when someone pushes a button it does some shit then I send that to a customer and they complain that the numbers are wrong so I forward their email to the actual economists.

Then I go home and either play computer games or drink or sometimes both.

[Mrs Wogans lemon drizzle]

pays the bills i guess!

[BlodwynPig]

Fuckin... Looking at spreadsheets and writing stored procedures in SQL and making silly little macros in Visual Basic so when someone pushes a button it does some shit then I send that to a customer and they complain that the numbers are wrong so I forward their email to the actual economists.

Then I go home and either play computer games or drink or sometimes both.

officially headhunted now

[Ferris]

Fuckin... Looking at spreadsheets and writing stored procedures in SQL and making silly little macros in Visual Basic so when someone pushes a button it does some shit then I send that to a customer and they complain that the numbers are wrong so I forward their email to the actual economists.

Then I go home and either play computer games or drink or sometimes both.

This sounds like my dream job. Spreadsheets, macros, not dealing with other people. Enjoy it

[Mr_Simnock]

Pretty much what I do as a job too.

[Cuellar]

not dealing with other people

If only. Angry bloody customers everywhere phoning me and asking me about economics and I know nothing of economics.

Pretty much what I do as a job too.

This is the only job. There is to be no other job but this.

[BlodwynPig]

If only. Angry bloody customers everywhere phoning me and asking me about economics and I know nothing of economics.

This is the only job. There is to be no other job but this.

Ive forwarded your CV on to the company and they'd like to have a word

[Uncle TechTip]

Does the threat of automation worry you?

[BlodwynPig]

Does the threat of automation worry you?

Me? I came across the worry during my PhD. We were implementing a real-time process monitoring and control system at a small wastewater treatment plant south of Glasgow. The plant operators were a bit pissy with us - "we don't trust computer" "20 years experience in these hands" "what does computer know that we don't". A few weeks after testing the system and a significant reduction in false alarms and energy consumption..."so, how does this computer things work then"

[Ferris]

If only. Angry bloody customers everywhere phoning me and asking me about economics and I know nothing of economics.

I have an economics & philosophy degree. Can I take your job? I'll soften em up with the philosophy, then hit em straight with the economics while they're still reeling. As long as all they want is graphs of supply and demand and how exchange rates work, I'll be laughing.

[Cuellar]

Ive forwarded your CV on to the company and they'd like to have a word

Cheers I hope you mentioned that I've been mentioned at least once in the 'Last post that made you guffaw' thread  I think they'd like to know that

[Cuellar]

Does the threat of automation worry you?

Not really. Part of my job is to automate a load of our processes so I suppose I'm doing myself out of work but I don't care, as I say I'm not arsed one iota about this job. Rather be a... Dunno something good like an electrician or a poet or something.

[Zetetic]

At my work, junior ones were titled 'Squirrels' and seniors 'Ninjas' - are you a 'Ninja'?

No. Not that sort of thing.

I suspect my job is a bit more interesting than Cuellar's, but on the other hand I have evenings where I mostly want to punch myself to death for arguing fruitlessly with Executive Directors about bad governance preventing work on reducing state violence against the most vulnerable. Swings and roundabouts.

I have no interest in working on sewage management frontends in Canada and C# of all things.

[BlodwynPig]

I have no interest in working on sewage management frontends in Canada and C# of all things.

In the future, you won't have the luxury to make that decision.

[Twed]

I decided to use linear regression to project some shit today, I'm just like you data weirdos.

[BlodwynPig]

I decided to use linear regression to project some shit today, I'm just like you data weirdos.

Projection to latrine structures?

[Zetetic]

It used to be that quite a lot of my job was telling people to stop that. (Excel making it easy to insert pointless linear trendlines.)

Mind you, the NHS in England has tied much of its 'safe staffing' work to the misapplication of linear regression so why not. None of it matters anyway.

[Twed]

It used to be that quite a lot of my job was telling people to stop that. (Excel making it easy to insert pointless linear trendlines.)

Mind you, the NHS in England has tied much of its 'safe staffing' work to the misapplication of linear regression so why not. None of it matters anyway.

This definitely wasn't grounded in much sense, but it fulfils the vague requirement of being able to "predict growth". It was quite fun listening to people just come up with their own shit algorithms on the spot when trying to describe what they want ("just average the last three and us that as a slope"). I think it's only polite to fuck that off in favour of fitting some polynomials.

[BlodwynPig]

This definitely wasn't grounded in much sense, but it fulfils the vague requirement of being able to "predict growth". It was quite fun listening to people just come up with their own shit algorithms on the spot when trying to describe what they want ("just average the last three and us that as a slope"). I think it's only polite to fuck that off in favour of fitting some polynomials.

The very least you should be doing is canonical correspondence analysis