Should techies be good at DIY?

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I've been able to hold down a day job as a programmer for a number of years now (not to mention get a degree in the stuff) yet I can't do DIY for shit. Ikea instructions and futon assembly instructions are my foe.
Essentially my question comes down to this - is a lack of decent spatial and mechanical reasoning ability (below the 50th percentile easily!) strange for someone used to solving problems analytically and logically etc?

― Minky Starshine, Thursday, 16 January 2003 14:39 (twenty-three years ago)

They'd want to be as no one else is gonna do them!

― Lara, Thursday, 16 January 2003 14:43 (twenty-three years ago)

(Cries)

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Thursday, 16 January 2003 14:44 (twenty-three years ago)

But Andrew you're *good* with your hands.

― Lara, Thursday, 16 January 2003 14:46 (twenty-three years ago)

As a progerammer you're dealing with abstract lines of code that don't exist anywhere other than on the screen (or a piece of paper). The ability to manipulate those is something that many people don't have...

...right?

Putting togeather a Trølløp, however...

― jm (jtm), Thursday, 16 January 2003 14:56 (twenty-three years ago)

It's true, I do know my hand like the back of my hand. A sensitive and -

Oh no! I'm letting a female trick me into stereotype! I'm a cyber-quisling!

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Thursday, 16 January 2003 15:16 (twenty-three years ago)

*evil grin*

― Lara (Lara), Thursday, 16 January 2003 15:20 (twenty-three years ago)

I conquered the Goliat recently and claimed my prize of a new desk.
I also did a couple of summers in construction (siding and landscaping) which helped.

― Mr Noodles (Mr Noodles), Thursday, 16 January 2003 15:27 (twenty-three years ago)

There's a couple of things going on here. One is the ability to decipher and follow instructions. Another is the ability to work methodically under ones own direction (say, painting). And finally the ability to improvise and invent (ie fixing stuff). I'm okay at the first two but the last one is what I really like. I am the kind of dodgy fixes (just look at my bed - or our new imrpved actual coathanger arial.

― Pete (Pete), Thursday, 16 January 2003 15:40 (twenty-three years ago)

I feel as if I've been putting together Ikea furniture for the last month or so, oh, I have.

― chris (chris), Thursday, 16 January 2003 15:44 (twenty-three years ago)

The King Geek here is brilliant at the improvising stuff, and has fixed almost everything with cables ties at one point or another.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Thursday, 16 January 2003 15:53 (twenty-three years ago)

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