I’m in San Francisco where JavaOne is now halfway complete. This is my first time at the largest programming conference, and I have learned what JavaOne is really about and the best ways to take full advantage of the opportunity:

Talk to every person that is directly behind you in the queues

JavaOne is NOT just about learning, it is about networking. I challenge you to do this and I know that you will be well rewarded for it. You might even find out about good parties, more on that later. Making good connections will take your career a long way, and if you are hiring than you are bound to find people that suit just what you are looking for.

You have probably seen a lot of buzz surrounding software engineering jobs that offer amazing benefits just to attract and keep "rock star" talent. The first ones that come to mind for me are from Hedgehog Labs and perhaps What else do companies have to do to keep Software Engineers?. You probably know (dream?) about Google 20% time. I was just talking with a friend about how great his benefits were compared to mine yadda yadda yadda… I would say that it has become a big bragging point in our industry. Is it even real or is this just perceived?

1. Don’t create prototypes

Clients do not know what they want. Managers do not know what they want. When you prototype, you learn about the constraints you are going to face and your audience learns what they can have and what is impossible. NOTE: Try not to use your prototypes for production code, they are meant to be prototypes. Learn from them and don’t just….