Do You Have A Side Project

I've noticed that there has been some debate about the value of a programmer based on what they do with their free time. Strangely enough, it seems that a lot of value is placed on a person who leaves a 8 to 10 hour shift of programming just to return to their home and continue into the night hacking out lines of code.

I agree with the side that says when you get home you need to turn it off. You need to clear your mind for a few hours before you go back into work the next day and do it all over again...

Well, I agree with it in principle, but that's about it...

Having A Side Project

You may have noticed the project I was working on called jLinq, the Javascript Query Language. I'm still working on that project, trying to improve it and make it better. Better argument handling, performance tweaks, new extension libraries, etc. As much fun as writing a query language can be, there are more entertaining projects a person could be working on.

Since I was a kid, I was always into art and stuff - Never quite good enough to go professional, but good enough to get a decent job being a designer/programmer. I actually got into programming so I could make a video game (no surprise there, huh?)

I can say attempts A through G failed miserably - but the funny thing is that along the way I got a lot better at programming to the point I've got a career doing it.

I've only been on this project about two weeks now, but here are some screenshots of the current game. It's built in Flash, using ASP.NET MVC for the server side programming. Even if I never finish the project it is a fun way to get better at other languages and tools.

It's funny, programming a game is so much easier with 8 years of software development under your belt!

I really do agree you should clear your mind of programming once you get home - but I wouldn't have gotten into my career if I followed that rule. Tinkering around with a small pet project can open doors for you that you never even knew were there!

Do you have a side project - because if you do it may just lead you into your next career!