What's your job about?
I am a software engineer at Vista, a software company that provides solutions for the film industry.
Having started as a graduate earlier this year, I and my team focus on point of sale (POS for short), which is a Vista sales interface product used by cashiers to sell tickets and concessions. Our task focus is different at each stage. We have recently completed regression testing. Regression is the stage where we check previous performance, and identify and locate problems, it is also a good opportunity for me to further understand our products. Furthermore, we will start a bug fix period, and then we may assign team members to bugs or features. So the good thing is that each period has different concerns, which means that there will always be new things to work on.
What's your background?
I was born in China. I went to New Zealand to complete my high school studies and obtain a university degree.
My interest in computer science began with hacker movies. What impressed me was that they were able to make such a huge impact through a small screen. Moving back to reality, when I started my college study, I didn't think I could become a software developer. Before I came to college, I had no programming experience, so I wasn't sure I could do it. But for the university, the good thing is that it allows you to explore what you like. I can take some computer science courses, even if it is not my major. Then I realized that I was fascinated by it. I liked the sense of achievement when you solve a problem. So I decided to become a software engineer. I joined Vista in February 2022 and became a graduate software engineer.
Could someone with a different background do your job?
Definitely! Learning coding at Uni and getting a degree is certainly not the only road to becoming a software engineer. Most programmers are not Hollywood hackers. Becoming a programmer is much easier than you think. You can easily find free coding resources from the internet and then, set a target and work towards that goal. But to be honest, learning and formally applying programming to workers are not the same thing. Uni just provides basic professional knowledge, the most important ability is to problem-solve and be able to continue learning.
What's the coolest thing about your job?
The coolest thing about my job is the sense of achievement after solving problems. My first feature was to change the interface of the login form. I knew almost nothing about the language I needed to use when I started. I appreciate the opportunity to have the chance to gain knowledge and to be able to learn from my senior team. My team and I completed this project. It's great to see what you've done and successfully deployed.
What are the limitations of your job?
A standard day for a software engineer involves lots of coding and debugging, so you have to spend the day’s hours behind computer screens. Excessive watching of computer monitors may cause eye strain. So maintaining a work-life balance is important.
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