On Sun, Jul 27, 2014 at 9:28 AM, Owen DeLong <owen@delong.com> wrote:
On Jul 26, 2014, at 6:01 PM, William Herrin <bill@herrin.us> wrote:
On Sat, Jul 26, 2014 at 1:13 PM, Owen DeLong <owen@delong.com> wrote: Bill, on your list of not so wonderful things in DC, you left off: Weather In the sumer, the DC area is, well, what you’d expect from a hot, humid, fetid swamp. In the winter, you can make ice cream outside without rock salt (though there’s plenty of salt available on the roads).
Meh. The weather is always temperate indoors. You ARE a computer guy, right?
Yes and no. I like being able to go outside and enjoy things outside of my job environment.
To me, weather matters.
I guess if I had grown up or been stuck in the DC area for a long time, I might not be so focused on the outdoors.
Contrary to Bill’s claims, we have nearly as many data centers housing lots of interconnect, content providers, etc. out here, too. We’re also a primary gateway to Asia and the Pacific as well as Australia.
I wouldn't dream of suggesting that silicon valley lacks for anything of interest to computer and networking folks. You even have heavy taxation, heavy regulation and a state government ever on the brink of financial collapse, all things less prevalent in Northern Virginia. Though if you really enjoy those things you can always visit DC or the People's Republic of Maryland.
Meh... I don't think my taxation is that high overall. Yes, I pay a slightly higher sales tax than VA, but IIRC, our income tax rate is lower. My property taxes are definitely lower and more predictable.
Owen
Shush, Owen! It's already crowded enough out here--the last thing we need is more people thinking it's a good place to work. ;P You wouldn't like it here in the Bay Area. It's horrible, there's pollution all the time, the traffic is terrible, there's no reasonable public transportation, there's no late-night eateries for when you finish that maintenance window at 2am. You definitely don't want to live here. :D And as far as that government data about salary goes...yeah, that's definitely the mean, and doesn't represent the full range. My W2 last year was *mumble*-times the listed mean for some parts of the country. Telecommuting can work out amazingly well, for the right people. But it takes dedication and focus, and a relentless willingness to be accessible to your coworkers. Matt