Monday, October 29, 2007

Sarajevo - Signed the eSEE Agenda for the Development of Information Society



Oh my brothers please hurry up with that development of communication infrastructure. We are so limited, and the best is, that we are not aware, how much we are limited.
First example is my home connection. I'm using cable connection, paying about 20 euro every month for 5GB transfer (damn upload included). Believe or not, this is one of the cheap connections to rent. Next big nightmare here is connection speed, which is 256kbps.
Main internet provider offers better conditions in speed, for nearly same price, but you have 3GB transfer limit.
Of course, you can take flat rate with large speed, for much more money. Can young people of Bosnia and Herzegovina afford this, connection which is less then average connection, which use young man from europe?! Answer you already know.
So, I really hope, that this initiative of South Eastern Europe stability pact, would have a concrete results and benefits for people of this part of world.

Link to this organisation

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Relax your body, your mind and your soul in Bosnia

This is not commercial for tourism in Bosnia&Herzegovina, but there is a lot of nice places for relaxing if you find some time.
Here are the pictures from my holiday on Boračko Lake. I was there with my friend Michael, he is working in one geometer office in Germany.

First, if you are on holiday in Bosnia, open your eyes wide around, because there are some mine fields over some places, and signs are often too small and somehow hidden.


Hiking over hills above one village. Interesting story is, when we met some people from the village working on the field, and asked them, does they have milk and cheese to sell us, one of them took a cellphone and call his mother, which told him, that there is no milk and cheese in the house :)

In a front of very small cave, a new caveman hiking :)

Michael preparing lunch

Picture of lake from the road which doesn't lead anywhere. It was really disturbing news when we found that we must go back over very very hard road :( if you see that lake from this point of view, please go back immediately, because you are going nowhere.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Bosnian reality - software engineers

If someone of you interests what looks like to be software engineer in Bosnia&Herzegovina, here is a story.
In the country like this, where is very hard to find any normal job, you may consider yourself lucky if you are software engineer. Yes, every day there is a plenty offers on bosnian jobs portal.
There is a lot of home born and foreign companies who offers you full time job, just few of them, gives you opportunity to work like freelancer or part time employee.
If you prefer freelance jobs, of course, you have getafreelancer.com and similar sites.
Most of SW companies are having official normal working time, but this type of job often requires a overtime work, for which in 90% cases you are not payed.
The biggest advice for engineers who are searching for new job is to CAREFULLY read you future work contract. This contract can define your life path in next years, and gives employer a chance to indirectly holds you in a place, no matter are you satisfied or not. SW houses work for almost every kind of institutions, from financial, government, big private industry, and if there is a part in a contract which doesn't give you a chance to work in institutions which where in some kind of relations with your company for a long time after you quit if you are not satisfied, you should reconsider your decision.
Payment is of course probably most important part of this story. If you don't have working experience in some other company (working like freelancer isn't counted), or if you have experience and you aren't graduated, your negotiations are not on your side, and often they would probably say to you "you aren't qualified engineer' and offer you about 300-400 euro, like first payment, 'and if you improve yourself, you would get more', which can take a long period, depends from company. There are of course exceptions, where you can get more than 600 euro for the first payment, but you must have good references and CV or something which would impress them.
Considering all this, and average payment in Bosnia, which is about 300 euro, good software engineers can make a good money (which doesn't include, working on projects after you get at home after work :)) ).

Freelancers and self employers I wish you good luck in charging for your projects.
All the best, and good luck for those who are considering about new full time job.

Saturday, October 20, 2007

First time, first post on blogspot

Ok...finaly, after surfing over many blogs on blogspot, I decided to open my own.

My girlfriend asked me, "what would you write about?", so in the moment I'd brought decision to write something like autobiography, with periodic comments about common life.

So we would see, would it be something interesting :)

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