Hired as a one-man development team and struggling

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Is it unrealistic to expect a single computer engineer, however bright, to bear the full responsibility of designing and launching a hardware/software product?



Background



I studied computer engineering technology at a local trade school, and was frequently among the top performers in my class. After graduation, I was hired as the sole tech guy by a small local company that designs and manufactures hardware/software for a niche market.



Our original goal was to design a simple device and associated software that would augment an existing product line. This quickly scope-creeped to creating an entirely new product line based on the Best Widget Ever™.



I've been working on this project for 5 years now, and I feel like every step has been an uphill battle. The entire burden of hardware development, software development, graphics design, user experience, and to a lesser extent marketing has been placed on me. My boss will frequently approach me with vague ideas for features, which I will have to distill into something that makes sense. I've had to self-learn entire programming languages, frameworks, and design patterns in pursuit of our elusive goal.



It should go without saying that I'm feeling pretty burned out at this point. I've been able to complete most of the hardware and firmware development, but desktop app development (specifically UI and graphics design) might actually break me. I want to see this project to completion, but development has slowed to a crawl and I'm not sure if or when that will be. When I consider how much work will be involved in actually launching the product line once the design phase is complete I'm overwhelmed.



I keep thinking that a more competent developer should be able to handle this, and that I'm being paid too much for such slow progress. I used to enjoy development, but this project has sucked the life out of me.






software-development stress hardware






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    Question



    Is it unrealistic to expect a single computer engineer, however bright, to bear the full responsibility of designing and launching a hardware/software product?



    Background



    I studied computer engineering technology at a local trade school, and was frequently among the top performers in my class. After graduation, I was hired as the sole tech guy by a small local company that designs and manufactures hardware/software for a niche market.



    Our original goal was to design a simple device and associated software that would augment an existing product line. This quickly scope-creeped to creating an entirely new product line based on the Best Widget Ever™.



    I've been working on this project for 5 years now, and I feel like every step has been an uphill battle. The entire burden of hardware development, software development, graphics design, user experience, and to a lesser extent marketing has been placed on me. My boss will frequently approach me with vague ideas for features, which I will have to distill into something that makes sense. I've had to self-learn entire programming languages, frameworks, and design patterns in pursuit of our elusive goal.



    It should go without saying that I'm feeling pretty burned out at this point. I've been able to complete most of the hardware and firmware development, but desktop app development (specifically UI and graphics design) might actually break me. I want to see this project to completion, but development has slowed to a crawl and I'm not sure if or when that will be. When I consider how much work will be involved in actually launching the product line once the design phase is complete I'm overwhelmed.



    I keep thinking that a more competent developer should be able to handle this, and that I'm being paid too much for such slow progress. I used to enjoy development, but this project has sucked the life out of me.






    software-development stress hardware






    share







    New contributor




    Neil Thiessen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.





















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      Question



      Is it unrealistic to expect a single computer engineer, however bright, to bear the full responsibility of designing and launching a hardware/software product?



      Background



      I studied computer engineering technology at a local trade school, and was frequently among the top performers in my class. After graduation, I was hired as the sole tech guy by a small local company that designs and manufactures hardware/software for a niche market.



      Our original goal was to design a simple device and associated software that would augment an existing product line. This quickly scope-creeped to creating an entirely new product line based on the Best Widget Ever™.



      I've been working on this project for 5 years now, and I feel like every step has been an uphill battle. The entire burden of hardware development, software development, graphics design, user experience, and to a lesser extent marketing has been placed on me. My boss will frequently approach me with vague ideas for features, which I will have to distill into something that makes sense. I've had to self-learn entire programming languages, frameworks, and design patterns in pursuit of our elusive goal.



      It should go without saying that I'm feeling pretty burned out at this point. I've been able to complete most of the hardware and firmware development, but desktop app development (specifically UI and graphics design) might actually break me. I want to see this project to completion, but development has slowed to a crawl and I'm not sure if or when that will be. When I consider how much work will be involved in actually launching the product line once the design phase is complete I'm overwhelmed.



      I keep thinking that a more competent developer should be able to handle this, and that I'm being paid too much for such slow progress. I used to enjoy development, but this project has sucked the life out of me.






      software-development stress hardware






      share







      New contributor




      Neil Thiessen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.











      Question



      Is it unrealistic to expect a single computer engineer, however bright, to bear the full responsibility of designing and launching a hardware/software product?



      Background



      I studied computer engineering technology at a local trade school, and was frequently among the top performers in my class. After graduation, I was hired as the sole tech guy by a small local company that designs and manufactures hardware/software for a niche market.



      Our original goal was to design a simple device and associated software that would augment an existing product line. This quickly scope-creeped to creating an entirely new product line based on the Best Widget Ever™.



      I've been working on this project for 5 years now, and I feel like every step has been an uphill battle. The entire burden of hardware development, software development, graphics design, user experience, and to a lesser extent marketing has been placed on me. My boss will frequently approach me with vague ideas for features, which I will have to distill into something that makes sense. I've had to self-learn entire programming languages, frameworks, and design patterns in pursuit of our elusive goal.



      It should go without saying that I'm feeling pretty burned out at this point. I've been able to complete most of the hardware and firmware development, but desktop app development (specifically UI and graphics design) might actually break me. I want to see this project to completion, but development has slowed to a crawl and I'm not sure if or when that will be. When I consider how much work will be involved in actually launching the product line once the design phase is complete I'm overwhelmed.



      I keep thinking that a more competent developer should be able to handle this, and that I'm being paid too much for such slow progress. I used to enjoy development, but this project has sucked the life out of me.






      software-development stress hardware




      software-development stress hardware





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      Neil Thiessen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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      Neil Thiessen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.








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      Neil Thiessen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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      Neil Thiessen is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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