Where do I find c++ coders?
January 2, 2007 11:40 PM Subscribe
How do I find C++ progammers? (Not a jobs post... more inside)
I'm trying to hire one person to write some windows c++ code for me but I can't even find the right place to post the job. Ideally I think I would find a student in a CS program at a good school or someone looking for a small project while hunting for a real job. I've posted to craigslist which simply results in a flood of spam from recruiter types or offshore teams. The metafilter jobs board and the 37 signals job board are both very ruby/php focused. Is there a place where c++ coders dwell?
I'm trying to hire one person to write some windows c++ code for me but I can't even find the right place to post the job. Ideally I think I would find a student in a CS program at a good school or someone looking for a small project while hunting for a real job. I've posted to craigslist which simply results in a flood of spam from recruiter types or offshore teams. The metafilter jobs board and the 37 signals job board are both very ruby/php focused. Is there a place where c++ coders dwell?
Why does it have to be C++? and what's wrong with "offshore teams"?
Have you tried rentacoder? Though the one who wins the contract will most likely be someone in an "offshore" location.
Maybe you could try going to the local university and posting a one page ad in the CS dept. with something like "Looking for programmer to do___ in C++, pays well!" That should do the trick.
I've also heard that if you are working on a project, you might have some luck posting the project at sourceforge and letting the open source bazaar do its work.
posted by philomathoholic at 11:57 PM on January 2, 2007
Have you tried rentacoder? Though the one who wins the contract will most likely be someone in an "offshore" location.
Maybe you could try going to the local university and posting a one page ad in the CS dept. with something like "Looking for programmer to do___ in C++, pays well!" That should do the trick.
I've also heard that if you are working on a project, you might have some luck posting the project at sourceforge and letting the open source bazaar do its work.
posted by philomathoholic at 11:57 PM on January 2, 2007
Schools don't teach C++ much anymore
Not true! I'm taking it next quarter at a school not even well known for its CS dept.
posted by philomathoholic at 11:59 PM on January 2, 2007
Not true! I'm taking it next quarter at a school not even well known for its CS dept.
posted by philomathoholic at 11:59 PM on January 2, 2007
Best answer: Well, I'm a C++ coder, and there are others here as well. Post to jobs.
Or, go to freenode C++ group and ask very politely; the kids there are young but the ones with channel operator status really do know their Standard-conforming C++98 C++ well. Most of them are also too young to legally contract with you, but.... if you're tempted to offer a freenode kid a crappy deal, don't do this; if he's naive enough to accept it, word will still get around.
Do not, DO NOT, DO NOT, post a job offer to any usenet group in the comp.* hierarchy group, unless the group specifically has "jobs" in its name and its charter allows job postings. You will be flamed mercilessly, and many reading it who might have taken the job will shun you. (On the other hand, it is possible to email people whose posts you read in comp.lang.c++, but unless you're offering top dollar or something they specialize in, except no or terse or even berating replies.)
Note that most people in both the freenode and usenet groups will disdain MS Windows. (Hint: a good way to mollify them is to be sure to refer to that OS as "MS Windows", and to suggest that what you want to do would be simply and obviously achieve on an (unspecified) better OS.)
You may or may not be able to post a job offer in a the Microsoft usenet hierarchy (read each group's charter and FAQ to find out). In general, the large groups will have a large percentage of clowns, but the smaller groups -- especially those dedicated to one API (e.g., MAPI) will have a good proportion of MS partners who really do know that particular MS API. On the other hand, they will also charge top dollar.
I'd try here and in freenode first, myself, but then, I'm a C++ coder, so really I'd just do it myself.
Of course, as with any code-to-hire job, make sure you can give a very detailed specification & requirement; and any programmer who doesn't want that before starting work should be looked on with suspicion.
posted by orthogonality at 12:02 AM on January 3, 2007 [1 favorite]
Or, go to freenode C++ group and ask very politely; the kids there are young but the ones with channel operator status really do know their Standard-conforming C++98 C++ well. Most of them are also too young to legally contract with you, but.... if you're tempted to offer a freenode kid a crappy deal, don't do this; if he's naive enough to accept it, word will still get around.
Do not, DO NOT, DO NOT, post a job offer to any usenet group in the comp.* hierarchy group, unless the group specifically has "jobs" in its name and its charter allows job postings. You will be flamed mercilessly, and many reading it who might have taken the job will shun you. (On the other hand, it is possible to email people whose posts you read in comp.lang.c++, but unless you're offering top dollar or something they specialize in, except no or terse or even berating replies.)
Note that most people in both the freenode and usenet groups will disdain MS Windows. (Hint: a good way to mollify them is to be sure to refer to that OS as "MS Windows", and to suggest that what you want to do would be simply and obviously achieve on an (unspecified) better OS.)
You may or may not be able to post a job offer in a the Microsoft usenet hierarchy (read each group's charter and FAQ to find out). In general, the large groups will have a large percentage of clowns, but the smaller groups -- especially those dedicated to one API (e.g., MAPI) will have a good proportion of MS partners who really do know that particular MS API. On the other hand, they will also charge top dollar.
I'd try here and in freenode first, myself, but then, I'm a C++ coder, so really I'd just do it myself.
Of course, as with any code-to-hire job, make sure you can give a very detailed specification & requirement; and any programmer who doesn't want that before starting work should be looked on with suspicion.
posted by orthogonality at 12:02 AM on January 3, 2007 [1 favorite]
Yeah, I agree with rentacoder. I've had bits of code written by people from Egypt, Russia, Romania, and here in the US, and have been happy each time. Just be very clear what you want.
posted by rolypolyman at 12:08 AM on January 3, 2007
posted by rolypolyman at 12:08 AM on January 3, 2007
Another C++ Win32 coder here. Mefi jobs may be biased towards web stuff, but that's caused by the posters, not the potential candidates. From observing AskMe, I think there are a lot of us here, so post away.
Also, ditto what orthogonality said about specs.
posted by equalpants at 1:40 AM on January 3, 2007
Also, ditto what orthogonality said about specs.
posted by equalpants at 1:40 AM on January 3, 2007
Not the question you asked, but: Good programmers aren't "C++ programmers" -- they can use nearly any language. Find someone who knows a half dozen well and hire him.
posted by cmiller at 7:13 AM on January 3, 2007
posted by cmiller at 7:13 AM on January 3, 2007
My university still uses C++ as the primary teaching language. Any decent programmer knows C++.
posted by phrontist at 7:41 AM on January 3, 2007
posted by phrontist at 7:41 AM on January 3, 2007
Joel on Software has a job board. It's a site that talks about programming a lot, windows a lot, and C++ a fair amount. Seems like a good place to start looking. (It's a fairly popular geek site.)
posted by chunking express at 8:11 AM on January 3, 2007
posted by chunking express at 8:11 AM on January 3, 2007
"Schools don't teach C++ much anymore
Not true! I'm taking it next quarter at a school not even well known for its CS dept."
That's why they're teaching it there ;) Most schools switched to Java.
Try
hiddennetwork.com
programmermeetdesigner.com
getafreelancer.com
I have had luck with these.
posted by jesirose at 10:24 AM on January 3, 2007
Not true! I'm taking it next quarter at a school not even well known for its CS dept."
That's why they're teaching it there ;) Most schools switched to Java.
Try
hiddennetwork.com
programmermeetdesigner.com
getafreelancer.com
I have had luck with these.
posted by jesirose at 10:24 AM on January 3, 2007
It isn't quite Cobol yet. I'm sitting at Google debugging C++ programs right now! (But I don't know from Windows -- just wanted to say that it's still a common skill...)
posted by lupus_yonderboy at 11:34 AM on January 3, 2007
posted by lupus_yonderboy at 11:34 AM on January 3, 2007
Response by poster: Thank you all, very useful advice. Just to clarify the comment about "offshore teams..." I don't care where I hire from, but last time I tried posting a similar job I got tons of senseless solicitations from people offering cutthroat rates on services that had nothing to do with my job posting. It's not the geography I have a problem with, it's the indiscriminate shotgun approach to job hunting.
posted by bryanboyer at 12:33 PM on January 3, 2007
posted by bryanboyer at 12:33 PM on January 3, 2007
Ideally I think I would find a student in a CS program at a good school or someone looking for a small project while hunting for a real job.
Most schools have job boards and recruiting offices. I got one of my current jobs this way.
posted by !Jim at 12:50 PM on January 3, 2007
Most schools have job boards and recruiting offices. I got one of my current jobs this way.
posted by !Jim at 12:50 PM on January 3, 2007
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Anyway, I've written tons of Win32 C++ code, feel free to drop me an email.
posted by delmoi at 11:55 PM on January 2, 2007