The Jack of All Trades

“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, design a building, conn a ship, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve an equation, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.” Robert A. Heinlein

This just caught my eye at Webdesigner Depot. In my opinion, the Jack of all trades will always be a great professional, since he can see things from different perspectives. A designer that can code a little, will design things thinking if the coding if possible. He doesn’t need to be an Ace in 4 different languages of webcode. He just needs to know his way around some HTML/CSS and PHP, for example, and his layouts will be more solid than from a designer that knows nothing about code.The other way is also true. A master coder, with a little knowledge of design and layout will pay attention to the details of the layout, and not make the mistakes usually seen when a designer sends a layout (PSD ) for the coder, and when the site comes back, it is a bit different, with things not precisely aligned, different font sizes and so on.

A lot of things can be improved with a a little knowledge. I’m ultimately driven by knowledge, and that’s first thing a Jack needs to have. Do you consider yourself a Jack?


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