RE: Have to know Programming to be able to write about it? -- NO

[John Posada <JPosada -at- book -dot- com>]

>> Is it possible that someone with geological training 
>> would have created it in 1 week and not have tied up 
>> the time of the SME?
>
>Apparently not, since they asked Beth to do it. I guess their
>geology SMEs were all busy doing geology. 

I've begun to notice a trend on this board. People automatically assume that
if someone has knowledge in something else (programming, dba, geology,
etc.), that they'd be doing that instead of writing. As if someone is a
writer because they cannot do anything else. I happen to LIKE what I do. I
picked it. I simply want to do it better, with more depth to WHAT I write,
not instead of what I write. 

Isn't it possible to know geology and still be a writer? Know programming
and still be a writer?

Why is it that people are afraid that if they knew programming, they'd
become a programmer, or if the knew SQL, that they'd automatically become
DBAs? Is there a standing voodoo curse or something?

Hopefully, in the future, the following conversation will occur:

Them: "John...you have MCSE certification...you want to be a network
administrator?"
Me: "No...I've seen what network admins do and I've seen what they look
like. I don't want to do that and I don't want to look that way. No thanks."
Them: "OK, keep writing about it."
Me: "Cool! I want more money to do it."
Them: "Okey Dokey"


John Posada
Senior Technical Writer
Barnes&Noble.com
jposada -at- book -dot- com
NY: 212-414-6656
Dayton: 732-438-3372
"Alright, nobody move! I've got a dragon here, and I'm not afraid to use it"
---------- Donkey

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