Every time I step into a lift (elevator πΊπ²) I wonder how might this be programmed? Is it mechanical or is there maybe some c microcontroller, maybe it's hamsters? πΉ
What are the most unusual programming jobs and how do you get involved in them?
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Nowadays we have computers beating humans in GO and chess in the news, influencing humans in FB, folding proteins and making your toaster collect data and transmitting it through internet. IoT sexdolls and hair dryers. Unusual is hard this days.
Unless is a very, very old elevator probably a *PLC, or hamsters.
I am not a expert in elevators, but definitively it is not an hamster.... I believe it is a chinchilla :-)
Seriously, I think that nowadays elevators and other devices are controlled with a microcontroller that (I expect) is usually programmed in C or similar... I never looked into the cost detail, but I think that inexpensiveness and the flexibility of a software solution are much superior to a pure hardware solution.
About the most unusual programming jobs... Honestly, I do not know. I guess you can find many peculiar jobs in the field of "embedded" stuff, possibly in many household appliance: ovens, microwaves, kitchen robots, ...
Oh, wait! I know! If you want something really unusual in a market that many believe will mushroom in the near future, give a look to the Sex Tech field. Sex Tech is the field of technology applied to sexual life, in the widest sense: it includes sex toys, but also medical devices, pregnancy facilitator/avoidance, sex robots (that can do a decent conversation, too...), 3D movies with VR... There is also a field called "Teledildonics" (yes, the name makes your eyebrow to raise... nevertheless, this is the name, I did not invented it)
Of course, some of those applications could be borderline with someone ethics, nevertheless on the medical side there is ample room for maneuver.
You could think that it could be embarrassing to tell your friends what you do for a living, but it is OK... I guess you'll be using C and not PHP (with ref. to an old joke)
If you think this field can interest you, I know that there will be in September (modulo virus) an event in Berlin I have never been there, so I cannot say if it is good or not, but I plan to go.
Embedded gets a hole new meaning.
When I was in high school (ten years go), I worked on an elevator project.
It was very fun !
We programmed an elevator in C++ with a Motorola controller, maybe a 6800 or something like that (it's bit old lol).
I find them really interesting, how does an elevator prioritize and all that stuff.
You have to visit the pen to get the full experience.