This question was asked by Ed Burns in his book 'Riding the Crest'. I remember that almost all of the rock star programmers found helpful if one had new and kool gadget. Programmer stays in touch with the latest design, hardware and software implementation which may affect also his work.
What is your opinion on this question?
I'm not a big fan of all the gadget craze. I always try to stay current with new tecnologies but I don't think that consuming gadgets has anything to do with it.
Cool gadgets are a good excuse to spend money and increase your cool factor.
Gadgets aren't so important, the PC itself is. Having a fairly new PC, with a nice screen, keyboard and mouse is a must. You are using them most of the day after all, so no point spending loads on the PC and getting cheap peripherals!
I believe it is fairly irrelevant.
Firstly, every domain (for example Web, OS X, iPhone, Windows) has its own aesthetics which means experience from gadgets won't necessarily transfer that well, in the same way a great Windows UI won't necessarily be a great OS X interface.
And owning a gadget hardly ever teaches about the underlying hardware or software implementation.
However, being able to appreciate great design, whereever it appears, whether that is in gadgets, literature or architecture has to be useful. And a curiosity about the world and a determination for life to be better will probably often lead to great programmers getting gadgets, however this is a case or correlation not being the same as causation. The gadgets don't help the programming skills, but the same traits drive both.
For me it's all about keeping things interesting, as I can get bored working on the same thing over and over.
Having a new gadget gives you something new to play with, thus increasing enthusiasm and helping to pick up new things, in turn making you a better developer.
I guess not everyone needs that motivation, but I find it can help during a lull, and it doesn't even need to be new hardware, I'm just as happy to pick up a new bit of technology / language etc, I find it has the same effect.
New gadgets are useful if they expand your horizon.
For example, i recently got myself an iPod touch; this has deeply changed my appreciation for touch-screen user interfaces -- i only knew "point of sales" touchscreen interfaces, which are usually horrible.
If I can program on the gadget sure.
I get considerable less(for programming) if I don't get to program [on] it.
It's a self-image maintenance thing. Having the latest geekbling helps make one feel like the sort of wired.com poster boy who's on top of all the trends, which motivates one to keep on top of the trends.
Really, almost anything you see people doing that seems somewhat inexplicable is probably an identity maintenance activity.
Depends on the programmer. Many programmers would be happy with cool gadgets as a job perk, but I wouldn't say it affects their productivity directly. If I had to choose, I'd rather get a good chair than a palmtop of the same price.
Things I've missed while working as a programmer in various companies of all sizes:
Depends what you're working on. I'd say that if you're doing UI work, have lots of diverse UIs to play with. Make sure they have a Mac and a PC, maybe one or two different kinds of smartphones and/or a PDA -- if you're that kind of company, maybe even a Nintendo Wii in the breakroom.
I think what Burns might be getting at their is exposure to other design paradigms. If you are programming in Windows and you get the latest and greatest WinMo phone, you're exposed to a different platform but really it's just a baby Windows. Contrast that with being a Windows programmer and getting an iPhone or a G1. You're being shown a very different way to get things done and you'll be able to pick up the parts you like out of someone else's vision.
There's a competitive aspect to many fields that software is often lacking. Competition helps you by showing you how other people solved the problem that you're looking at. If they are selling like gangbusters and you aren't, well, something's up there huh?