‘It is advisable for African programmers to adopt the motive of Miami Heat in order to survive, thrive and leave a legacy similar to Lebron James, Dwayne Wade or Chris Bosh.’ – Michael A. Aboagye ( Technology/Business Journalist)

Forthnight ago, I alighted on a previous article authored by Raindolf Owusu, founder of Oasis Websoft in Accra, Ghana. He is one of the few programmers advocating for open source software in Ghana and beyond.

However in his piece, he stressed on certain factors which indirectly bar mammoth programmers from reaching the zenith or carving a niche in the technology world.

He argued that not knowing the importance of investment in project, competing against colleagues, striving to know a lot in order to be regarded as a Jack of all trades, and other worrying issues won’t aid Africa’s development in the technology world.

Below is a summary of Raindolf’s article themed as ‘Agony of an African Programmer.’

Agonies of an African Programmer: Part 2

” Working as an independent mobile, web and software developer in Africa can be a trying experience. Africa for so long has being recognized by the world as an agricultural continent and for the past decade, many software developers ( African Code Kings ) are working tirelessly to prove that we are also a technological nation by building great websites , mobile apps and softwares that aims to solve our problems on the ground. This does not come at a cheap cost. I have listed below a few of the agonies myself and most developers go through as African Code Kings.

Investment

Most developers set up a tech start-up in search for investors to fund their projects. In Africa, most people do not understand the Silicon Valley style of Angel investment and funding. Investors in Africa perceive technology as selling tomatoes in the market. When they fund a start-up, they are looking for the short term profit. For strong developers who do not need this kind of funding, they work their ass out trying to fund their personal projects. They end up taking up so many odd web dev jobs that will in turn slow down their personal projects / innovations.

Jack of all trades and master of nothing.

An African developer tries to play all the roles in a company from being the CEO to the company’s publicist. Instead of focusing on one thing and mastering the art, He spends his time mastering all the aspects of a company. It is sometimes good but it comes with its own banes.

Awards and Competitions.

It is great to participate in code competitions and hackerthons to test your coding skills, but it is a different ball game if you want to build kick-ass technology to solve real life African problems and make money along the way.”

Hence, I have decided to employ the chemistry of Miami Heat as an example to follow in order to resolve issues disturbing majority of African programmers.

The reason why I decided to use Miami Heat chemistry as an illustration is mainly based on recent achievements. Out of the few thriving NBA teams, Miami Heat can boast of three players – Eddie House, Udonis Haslem and Dwayne Wade – each with a championship ring. A championship ring is not earned easily so you could imagine how efficient is the ‘Heatles Chemistry’ crafted by Erik Spoelstra.

We certainly reminisce how the ‘Trust Theorem’ benefited the entire team during previous seasons. The flawless chemistry emulated by Eddie House, Wade and his co. against Oklahoma City on the 30th of January is indeed a required ingredient in the genes of African programmers.

In other words, when the going gets tough, turn to one another for help.

It is virtually difficult to nod disapprovingly at the fact that the entire Miami Heat team is not one of the finest basketball teams in the states. Lebron James and co. are purposely known for strategic play on home or away court. Teamwork is the hallmark of Dwayne Wade and his talented play mates. You can’t deny such fact and begrudge them. They deserve it.

Here in Africa, comparing the characters of Miami Heat to our programmers is a complete different story. Although Africa harbor hordes of uniquely talented ‘coders’ , yet are we to see them thrive beyond local communities.

Their inability to thrive ( not all programmers) is a clear reason why the majority ought, if they desire to carve a niche, adopt the ‘Heatles Chemistry’ .

‘Heatles Chemistry’ is a coined word of mine. In other words, I invented the word due to the almost flawless chemistry between Lebron, Bosh, and Wade in their hey-days. Of course, it is hardly for NBA lovers to forget how the combination between Mike Miller, Dwayne Wade, Lebron James and Eddie House saved the day for the entire team against Oklahoma City on the 30th of January. So I believe if our fellow programmers adopt some positive motives of this team, we are certain to witness moderate improvement in the immediate future.

The Relevancy of Investment

‘An Investment in knowledge pays the best interest.’- Benjamin Franklin

Investment is often regarded by most of us as a way of granting necessary funds to a project or sowing a seed into a startup to aid its development. However, Benjamin Franklin’s insight in terms of investment is a far cry from the conventional definition of investment.

The above quote by Benjamin shows that research knowledge is another major form of investment which is likely to produce considerable results.

Prior to previous successful championship, the management team knew they could cause a ‘positive threat’ if certain players are fielded within the team. The management knew they needed a three-point specialist and one who is prepared to do rigorous job of rebounding, setting picks, and feeding the basketball to the ‘‘Big 3.’’ And because the Heat were willing to go ahead of the pack, the likes of Udonis Haslem and lithunian center Zydanu were purchased at reasonable price.

Programmers in Africa could relate to the above illustration if they are indeed certain to make a mark in their career. The same worthwhile results could be achieved if ‘knowledge’ investment is done thoroughly before the ball is set rolling. Knowledge investment is achingly painful but the output is certain to be profitable if research is done properly. We can’t afford to miss opportunities which leads to wider doors and grant us rare chance to compete with others developers based in Silicon Valley. Let us invest in knowledge for the sake of Africa’s development.

Jack Of All Trades, Master Of None

‘It is difficult to find a team focusing and believing in the same vision of other startups.’ – Raindolf Owusu (founder of Oasis Websoft).

We can’t deny the fact that Africa has intelligent ‘coders’ who are ready to deliver when called upon to resolve any thinkable problems worrying humanity and the environment we live in ( except apathy, depression and other emotional problems).

However, it is disturbing to hear many programmers struggling to be regarded as Jack of all trades. Have in mind that the moment you begin to wrestle for ‘Jack of all trades’ title, no one is likely to tout you as an expert or an authority on linux , windows, Java, python, Coffee Script, Php, Oracle, artificial intelligence and other languages.

At Miami Heat, each and every player is known for specific skills. Dwayne Wade on a good day could launch three – pointers with ease because he practice consistently.

Relating the above analogy to programmers in Africa is a different story altogether. Programmers prefer to learn diverse programming languages without managing to master at least one or two languages.

Here in Ghana, when it comes to open source software, Raindolf Owusu is virtually on the lips of every Ghanaian within the technology industry. His vision to raise awareness concerning open source usage in local communities is very noticeable. Also, we can talk of other geeks like Alfred Rowe ( of encodev labs) known purposely for building event apps.

The best way to resolve ‘Jack of all trades’ canker is to focus on one or two languages, master it and strive to learn about other languages but not into details.

Competition

‘Stop competing with others. Start competing with yourself.’ – Anonymous

The sooner developers or programmers acknowledges the relevance of not competing against each other, the better.

What would have happened if Dwayne Wade compete against Lebron James; Udonis Haslem strives to better than Zydrunas Ilgauskas or Eddie’s main focus is to win more championship ring than Dwayne Wade? Perhaps, the ‘heatles Chemistry’ we enjoyed previously and recently won’t have materialized.

The best example to illustrate a picture of depending on one’s skill and each other rather than competing or showing a desire to eclipse each other could be related to the game between Miami Heat and Oklahoma City on the 30th January.

Trailing 103 -102 against Oklahoma City, Wade and his men needed to produce a magical performance to triumph over their rivals.

As determined as they were, the mentality of Mike Miller to corporate with Eddie and James to widen the gap proved worthwhile eventually.

The same goes to developers in Africa. Although competition possess a force which could ignite creativity, excessive competition destroys one’s focus and intent to carve a niche or leave a legacy similar to Dennis MacAlistair Ritchie.

I firmly believe if much emphasis is be placed on self-improvement rather than focusing largely on one’s rival, significant achievements is bound to take place.

Original Post - http://www.siliconafrica.com/the-heatles-chemistry-is-required-in-the-genes-of-african-programmers/