Comments on SandyWalsh.com: How long can you work on a programming team before...

@Sandy I would still say that there are challenges...

2010-06-04T13:54:03.468-03:00

@Sandy I would still say that there are challenges where I am given that the problem domain is vast for voting software. But you're right about the wtf factor...

@Shawn ... that's true. The "new shiny&qu...

2010-06-04T13:03:00.081-03:00

@Shawn ... that's true. The "new shiny" of six years ago is perhaps the "wtf?!" of today.

Do you find you're still being challenged or becoming complacent?

You might try a small consulting firm. Small beca...

2010-06-04T12:52:42.689-03:00

You might try a small consulting firm.
Small because there shouldn't be enough people to overly specialize.
Consulting because you naturally move from project to project, giving different problem spaces as you move on.

Of course, the downside is they rarely give you enough time to fully explore a tool.

Sounds like I may be overdue, I've been here s...

2010-06-04T11:15:16.626-03:00

Sounds like I may be overdue, I've been here six years now. :)

I think part of the problem may be that in an established development team, the tool set and technology tends to stabilize over time and new or even different technology is avoided in favor of 'what works' which for a developer is a little boring.

If you are on a team that has lots of different types of projects to work on, this may change somewhat, but in an industry where new tools come out weekly or even daily, the same old team with the same old hammer may not be enough for some.