Helping Others for Fun and Profit

Perhaps, like me, you've found yourself saying:

• I want to write a program but I can't think of any real-world problem to solve*.
• I want to be able to show a prospective employer some of my code but my previous employers own all of the code I've written and they would not let me show it to others.
• I want to learn how to gather requirements and more effectively convert them into code but I can't talk with our customers.

I think I've stumbled upon a way of meeting these desires.

1. Find a friend, relative, or charity who has a problem that can be solved by software.
2. Offer to write some software to solve their problem. If they refuse, jump to step 1 with someone else. I would recommend that you offer to do the work pro bono publico.
3. Sign any non-disclosure agreements that might apply but stress that you will own the code you produce. After all, you want to be able to show the code to prospective employers.
4. Sit down with them and gather requirements.
5. Write the software as professionally as you know how in an iterative fashion seeking their input whenever it's needed (while respecting their time and schedules). Keep in mind that one of the goals of writing the software is to maintain the friendship. Buggy code may strain the friendship or even destroy it if the bug is serious enough.
6. Make sure that you protect yourself by releasing yourself from all liability just in case you have a litigious friend.
7. Deliver the software, the source code, and unit tests, and let them know that you'll be available to modify it if their needs change.

If you find that your friend is taking advantage of you, you may have to set some boundaries to protect the friendship.

By the way, the profit I was referring to in the title of this article is not necessarily monetary profit, but it definitely is personal and professional profit.

NOTICE: I am not responsible for any friends you may lose, family members who disown you, or charitable organizations who publicly defame you or sue after you follow these steps.

* Perhaps that's why there are so many ray tracers and sudoku solvers.