Should Programmers Be Protected With "Code Tariffs"?

extremetech.com ^ | March 7, 2003 | Mark Hachman

[Lunatic Fringe]

I see this as a security threat. Do we really want to import program code from 3rd world nations?

[eno_]

Excellent article, and very true: The only way to enforce a "code tariff" would be to have Big Brother Inside in every computer. If you think the Drug War is fun, just wait for the probable cause manufacturing tools they will come up with to enable inspection of PCs.

[Rodney King]

All that would happen if any such attempt were made to do this is that the Indians would write 99% of the code, and the Americans would just put the finishing touches on it.

[Servant of the 9]

I have the same problem with local Tech Support I have with foreign Tech Support, employees who do not speak excelent, accent free, English and often do not know their subject.

An idea like 'Code Tarriffs' could only happen in a country where 'Silicon Valley' developed on the outskirts of San Francisco.

What is going overseas is not programming, but code grinding.

The 'programming' is all in laying out the architecture and specifications of the program. Then it is parcelled out to what used to be 'Cobol Charlies', now I suppose 'C++ Charlies', to grind out the code blocks.

Why not move it overseas, it's blue collar work.

So9

[Reeses]

Honey works better than vinegar. A better solution for all American workers: The government should pay a commission to employers that generate personal income tax revenue for the government. A 2 or 3 percent commission would do wonders for halting the export of our highest paying jobs. An overseas worker pays no American taxes. The government benefits greatly from the hiring of Americans and should reward the practice.

[sinkspur]

The government should pay a commission to employers that generate personal income tax revenue for the government.

Absolutely not.

[xm177e2]

Applying a tariff on a per-character or per-byte basis might be possible, and would encourage tighter code.

Yes, let's put artificial pressure on people to write smaller (instead of faster, or more readable) code. What a grand idea.

[Reeses]

Why do you say that?

[duckman]

IMHO, the 'genie is out of the bottle' and those IT jobs are lost for good. More and more emphasis is being place on creating you own business or going into a service industry, lawyer doctor etc. If I had children at this time I would encourage them to go into some kind of profession or a really high paying trade.

[Destro]

Yup-screw college-train your kids to be a plumber-carpenter etc.

College trained professions are as dead as manufacturing jobs.

[sinkspur]

We've got enough of government "paying" businesses. No more.

[eno_]

When ever my kids slack off at school, I lay this scenario out for them: There will be about 7 billion people on Earth when they are grown. About 4 billion will be competing with them for jobs. If they are in the top 5% in intelligence and education, that means they will compete against 200 million similarly intelligent and educated people. I have always had consulting clients all over the world. For about 15 years now, I have competed against anyone, anywhere.

And the real question is: why would WE be entitled to be insulated from this competition?

[I got the rope]

Oh great...now I'll have to keep paying inflated $1000/day prices for a software engineer. The last 8 months has been great for business. The software guys are only charging me $600/day and they have actually become more productive with the steady work that our company gives them.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's great to have people that can THINK in code lingo, but the market is flooded with software engineers looking to make a buck. The good ol' days of sitting on your ass and stringing out a project for months are gone. These guys are going to have to take what the market will allow, and if they are good they can ask for whatever price they want.

[Destro]

I do not equate foreigners as equals to be competed against. The Olympics of old were a Greek only affair. I am sure the spirit of competition would have been aided by allowing barbarians to compete....

[Rebel_Ace]

"...should there be code tariffs on imported code?"

As a programmer, I would have to say no. Instead, there should be a federal subsidy for domestic programmers such as myself. The only fair subsidy would be one based on the number of characters of code produced. Yeah, that's it. In fact, here is a sample of code *I* would submit if I were being subsidised by the character:

//here we have to increment the counter by 1 (one) in order to have
the loop iteration number match that of the index of the array
that we are looking at//

const one=1;
integercountervariable:=integercountervariable+one;

//note that for readability we did not use the shorthand i++; which might confuse some programmers//


Yup, that's it, that's how I'd code for subsidies.

[theKing]

As long as you can take code, put it into a zip file, and email the zip file, there will never be terrifs on code. If you could do the same thing to sugar bananas or steel, there wouldn't be terrifs on those products either.

[Mr. Jeeves]

LOL! I wonder if the Indian programmers' code looks like that. Do they get paid by the line?

[eno_]

So you would have been among the Birchers complaining about how the "damn ferriners" - my parents and grandparents - who arrived here as refugees, were stealing jobs because they were highly educated and willing to take any work? Or does my white skin put me inside your definition of civilization?

[Destro]

Um, foreigners as in people employed in other countries not legal aliens. Read it again. I don't care for the employment situation in other countries.