>A very good example of why some very good programmers write very bad applications. I have seen the work of a number of people who dazzle me with their code. I get to see it when the client calls me in to determine why it doesn't solve their business problem.
>
>It is important in our business to be able to talk to computers. But talking (and listening) to humans is an equally important skill. As so many messages here on UT have often demonstrated, the two skills often do not co-exist in the same developer. <s>
>
When I was interviewed for my first programming job there was not one question about my programming skills (I had enough to be an entry-level programmer). None of the four people hired along with me had any programming background at all. The company was more concerned about our ability to understand what the user needed. They felt that if you could understand the business problem they could teach you to program. It is much harder to teach a programmer business skills.