[thelist] developer ethics?

[David Kutcher]

Wow, that was a bit of animosity early in the morning from a lurker.

> If it doesnt' directly involve you or
> your corporation...why the hell do you care?  By
> pointing out errors, you gain nothing but animosity
> from the contractor (who btw works in your field,
> something you don't want).  The corporation isn't
> going to pay you and neither is the contractor.

In general, I believe it sours the atmosphere in which we do work if a
customer is charged a large sum of money and is handed shoddy results from a
"professional".  Most customers know nothing about web design and
development except for their first-hand experiences or information they've
been told by friends and colleagues.  I thought it was up to us, the
professionals in the field, to set examples and to educate clients.

This isn't about pay.  This is about ethical obligations. (hence the title
of the thread)

> Web designers piss me off all the time with bad code,
> but that the way life works.  Unless you are offering
> to teach them or fix the problems for free, stay out
> of it.

Well, that's what this thread has been alluding to.  Beyond teaching the
individual, you can educate the client.  Certification is one way... not
that I necessarily agree with it.  There used to be guilds to handle this
sort of thing in the old days, to "regulate" an otherwise dispersed group of
craftsmen with no oversite.

> Eöl (who attempts to stay of others business and
> expects them to do the same)

That's all well and good, but if asked for your opinion, what would you say?

David