How does one become a programmer?

[ToppDog]

Hello all. I'm posting this here because it is the closest forum related to programming, even though it's not about software etc..

I'm looking for information on how to get an entry level programmer position. I studied Manual Precision Machining & CNC Programming & Operations at a local community college, & am now working as a CNC Operator at a local shop to gain experience with different machines. The experience is good, but I get little chance to do any programming, other than optimizing existing programs from the machine controls.

In school, we learned how to write mill & lathe programs from scratch, & later with CAM programs such as BobCAD & MasterCAM. Is this enough training to get an entry level programming position? Or, if not, what is the best way to do so? Practice on my own at home & build a portfolio?

Any advise is greatly appreciated.

[joecnc1234]

I learned to program at work on night shift while my machine was running. then when I made a few parts on my own (at night without anyone knowing) I told the owner I could help out on programming on my own time just give me a shot at the easier parts. pretty soon I learned the process and went to another shop that was real small and told them I was a programmer winged it for a couple of years than on to the real money. If you take some chances and believe in yourself and read everything you can even buy some instruction like Mike Matteras DVDs. You will make your own way. I have a theory everyone is their own company everything you put into your company pays dividends to you. As Nike once said "Just do it" it will happen if you force it to. Good luck
Joe

[ZipSnipe]

Nice one Joe , I like it. Topdog I,m in the same boat as you are except no cnc classes. I think ya just start at the bottom and work your way up. So far I,ve gone from pushing the green button to setting up electrodes in the EDM(in 8 month period). Just keep pluggin along and take Joe's advice.

[joecnc1234]

Thanks Zip. Btw I now own my own company. (20 years later).

[ImanCarrot]

Definately good advice from all I did the same and many years later am "the most technicaly qualified person in the company" (not my words- the owner's). Keep practicing and you won't get rusty. Take other people's code apart in your head to see why they do it "that way" instead of how you would do it- sometimes they are better, sometimes you are.

Don't be afraid or too proud to ask others for advice- generaly good programmers are keen to explain why they have programmed certain code in a particular manner. I cannot overstate this- ask everyone you can.

Confidence is everything, you just have to take the plunge- explain to a prospective employer your position and that you have a sound basic knowledge and are very keen to expand this. Coupled with enthusiam this should get your foot on the first rung

Good luck and best wishes!

[joecnc1234]

I agree don't ever demean it shows your weakness. just learn from others mistakes and move on. they will teach you so much from their mistakes you will be a better programmer in the end.

[ToppDog]

Thanks for all the advise guys.

[Delw]

I'd like to add a few things to this,
you asked how one becomes a programmer. this is a tricky question and it needs a few parts to make it work,

First of all anyone can be a programmer, my daughter was programming when she was 11 on smartcam. My wife can program. The problem is neither one could actually make it work with out major problem.
point is anyone can program. you don't need ot goto school or anything but just because you are a programmer doesnt mean your any good in a real world enviroment.
I know guys that have gone to school and many class and can program about anything, however they get there program on a machine and you'd btter stand in the next building cause the machine will throw parts.

The best programmers are the people that actually have had machine experiance and alot of it, mainly on hand mills and hand lathes. if you cant run set up and make parts in a hand lathe or hand mill IMHO you won't make it as a programmer.

The program is only as good as the person making it, if you can't make it or figure out how then the best program won't help you.

take a tube for example, about 1" dia .200 wall thickness 12" long inconel 718 with multiple radius grooves on the out side and in side and the whole thing needs to be .060 wall +-.001 roundness of .0005.
A typicle programmer will rough outside rough inside fin outside finish inside and be done. the part will be a chattering mess and have extreamly big bulges in it. spend 10-20 hours on set-up and scrap about half the parts.
someone who has run things on a manual lathe will have it done in 30mins-1hour and it be perfect, if not it will be close and need about 2 mins worth of grinding.
using a cnc and some knowledge from manual machines the part gets set up in 1 hour or less takes 15 mins to run and needs no grinding with a scrape rate of 0.

What I am getting at is you gain experiance , tricks of the trade, you understand feeds and speed and learning many different ways to make something work from experiance on a hand machine. My best programmers came from guys that had all kinds of oldschool experiance, our worst ones were guys that learned how to program in school. don't get me worng they were fantastic at using the program and in perfect parts in a perfect world there programs would work,but they have no experiance in cutting parts in a real world enviroment.

before I ever hired anyone I would hire them for a week just to run a hand mill and hand lathe, if they couldnt do it they wouldnt get hired if they could they would get hired. Even guys that came in that were programmers and set-up guys I would put them on a hand machine. about 1 out of every 10 would actually make it. some of those guys are some of the best machinist I have ever seen.
the next step after putting a programmer on a hand machine was to put them on a deburr bench for a day. I can guarentee you every single part they programmed was burr free

[ToppDog]

Great advice. I wish our shop followed all those tips, hehe.