Subj : Re: How much should I charge for fixed-price software contract? To : comp.programming,comp.lang.java.programmer,comp.lang.lisp From : Ulrich Hobelmann Date : Tue Aug 16 2005 11:38 am Robert Maas, see http://tinyurl.com/uh3t wrote: > Please give me advice: After I have already FAXed my resume to a given > employment agency, how long should I wait before I FAX them another > copy? Well, maybe they don't have an opening then... >> I'd like to question how well these resumes are tailored, and how >> well they're presented. > > OK, you be the judge. Here is a resume I sent in response to a job ad > on May 26: > > Robert Elton Maas, Sunnyvale, CA > Voice: 408-749-0453 > Internet electronic-mail: rem642b@Yahoo.Com > > EDUCATION: > Mathematics major at University of Santa Clara, Bachelor of Science > degree > > ACADEMIC/INTELLECTUAL HONORS, PROFESSIONAL LICENSES, AND PUBLISHED WORKS: > - Among top five (in whole United States) in William Lowell Putnam > undergraduate mathematics competition > - Report on nuclear magnetic resonance relaxation published > - Report on English-language programming for robot published > > PROGRAMMED IN THESE LANGUAGES: > - Java (on 3 platforms) > - C (on 4 platforms) C++ (on 2 platforms) > - Visual Basic > - Fortran (on 5 platforms) > - Lisp (on 5 platforms) > - Assembly/machine language on 7 different CPUs > > Platforms (programming environments) include: Macintosh, Unix+CGI, MS-Windows, > RedHat Linux > > MAJOR PROGRAMMING PROJECTS: > - Computer-assisted instruction for Calculus > - Laying out text mixed with mathematical formulas for printing or > display > - Information retrieval and indexing, including linked-text frames > - Packet-based client/server telecommunications, including handling > interrupts from I/O devices > - Effective algorithm for flashcard drill So far it doesn't sound too bad to me. > ADDITIONAL SPECIFIC ACCOMPLISHMENTS/ACTIVITIES/EXPERTISE/EXPERIENCE: > - Wrote software to use SAX parser in Java/J2EE to convert XML to SQL > for update to relational database. > - Wrote software to build&update tables in relational database using JDBC/SQL. > - Used ANT to maintain compiled versions of J2EE applications as source edited. > - Wrote white-box unit-testing at all levels of software modules from > single lines of code to full application use-cases. > - HTTP, HTML, CGI. > - Used JCreator to build Java projects. These above are IMHO too detailed. People simply *assume* that you could do that. Maybe a concrete bigger project wouldn't hurt, or an indication in what way your presence at a project helped it. [...] > OTHER SKILLS/EXPERIENCE/EXPERTISE: > - HTML, SQL/databases (MicroSoft Access, CloudScape), WebServer applications > > ONLINE (Web-accessible) DEMOS: > - Unix+CGI: http://www.rawbw.com/~rem/demos.html > - Applet: http://www.rawbw.com/~rem/Lab7a.class > - JavaDoc: http://www.rawbw.com/~rem/JavaDoc/Blab2/index-all.html > - JavaScript: http://www.geocities.com/rem642b/JavaScript/js1.html > - Multi-CGI-language education: http://www.rawbw.com/~rem/HelloPlus/hellos.html > - XML parsing (SAX): http://members.tripod.com/~MaasInfo/New/2005.6.12a.zip Leave out these small demos. Well, that is, I don't know what jobs you were applying to, but I assume that small demos are a given. If you need to, mention that you can code Javascript or work with XML, but I don't think anybody needs to know specifics. If they need to, they'll probably ask you. > Notice how they're all based on that same starting resume but I removed > different items in each and put in special stuff in each to better fit > the job from among the experience I have but which is relevant to only > a few jobs? Yep, but it's hard for me to know what's appropriate for what job application. (esp. since I'm still a student...) It wouldn't hurt to indicate why you're THE MAN for the job. (well, I assume you actually did write an introductory letter/email to accompany those resumes) >> .doc isn't cool, but if it's what everybody wants, you should get >> used to it. > > I don't have any money to pay for MicroSoft Word for Macintosh, so > that's not an option for me here. Yep. Maybe running TeX on you Unix account and just sending them a PDF works. I think most modern employers wouldn't mind that format, though I've also heard some insist on doc. ASCII text in an email looks too cheap, IMHO. >> For word processing you can get OpenOffice for free > > I have only 17 megabytes of unused space on my Macintosh hard disk. > How much space does the Macintosh version of OpenOffice need? AFAIK it only runs on Mac OS X, and needs a lot of space. Maybe you can find some room on that Redhat machine? Or maybe someone at the library or some university/school lets you use Office. -- I believe in Karma. That means I can do bad things to people all day long and I assume they deserve it. Dogbert .