Why techies can't resist their feline companions

Net Results: Cats and computer programmers have always shared a special bond. For the uninitiated, that connection may at first seem to be merely metaphorical:the now famous assertion that managing programmers is like herding cats.

I also don't know who first made the comparison. Out on the web, the comment is widely attributed to someone named Dave Platt, but I've come across a reference to the first usage being from "software guru Meilir Page-Jones" (and indeed, keeping within the theme here,please note that "Meilir" or "Page-Jones" would be a fine name for a programmer's cat).

The earliest dated reference I could find comes from a thread on an internet discussion board, where someone found this reference in the Washington Post magazine on June 9, 1985: "At Group L, Stoffel oversees six first-rate programmers, a managerial challenge roughly comparable to herding cats."

Finding first references on the net for similes about programmers is apparently the kind of thing programmers do in their spare time, while they wait for their code to compile.

At any rate, the image has been co-opted into general business and managerial speak these days (the business world not being content to leave the cats to the computer people).

It also retains such widespread currency in the computing world that EDS ran a series of television commercials a few years ago featuring herds of computer graphic-generated cats streaming across the American frontierland.

If you wish to safely try herding yourself, you may do so in a scratch-proof way with this game:www.ferryhalim.com/orisinal/g3/cats.htm.

But enough about metaphors - let's get down to more serious and real applications here for this very important computing accessory, and then address the equally serious issue of why Ireland seems to be, as in so many other computing areas, lagging behind the US and UK in the penetration and usage of cats in the IT sector.

First, let me establish for the uninitiated, the close association between cats and computers and programmers worldwide.

For exhibit A, I turn to columnist Kevin D. Weeks of VB Tech Journal, who examined this subject in detail in 1998. He wrote: "The best programmers prefer cats as pets.I've canvassed hundreds of programmers on the subject and time after time, cats turn out to be the non-human companion of choice."

You can also read an incisive review of a kitten as a computing accessory at www.dansdata.com/kitten.htm.This helpfully includes a chart that contrasts "the relative merits of four options for the computer enthusiast - a kitten, a puppy, a baby, and, as a representative example of the more usual kind of home information technology purchase, a new video card".

I need not reveal to the discerning programmer that the kitten comes out ahead of these other peripherals.

In a similar vein, those who wish to learn more about personal cats as computing accessories will find an instruction manual here: http://agora.rdrop.com/users/tierna/PC.html.That cats have firm associations with computers and programmers can be verified from a range of ecards, http://ecards.somemoorecats.com/ and also from these prints and cards: www.catsup.co.uk/shophelen.htm, as well as from this website dedicated to a gallery of cats looking deeply into computer screens: http://www.infinitecat.com

That computing enthusiasts care about the nurturing of these furry peripherals in a computing environment is clear from sites such as www.cattv.com/catwebsite.htm, which offers free online entertainment for moggies, and from the video one can purchase here: www.cyberpounce.com.

If the peripheral is causing occasional problems, the owner can troubleshoot using this software: www.bitboost.com/pawsense.

So from this evidence, one cannot but deduce that cats (and kittens) are a crucial part of the productive computing environment.

So much so that, on the basis of Mr Weeks' observation above that the best programmers desire cats as companions, we must accept that places where cats are warmly welcomed and encouraged actually lure the best programming talent.

And further, given the association between talented programmers and cats, surely it is in the interest of the nation to provide stronger support programmes for schoolchildren to learn to care for and appreciate cats - of course, alongside excellent teaching in computing - as one way of encouraging them to go into computing.

I think this is an excellent way to get more girls into programming, too, since girls often have a natural affinity for kittens that could be transferred to a love of computing.

One must then ask, is it not in the interests of the IDA as well as Science Foundation Ireland and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment to redress the poor general treatment of cats, which do not have the same legal standing as dogs, and therefore fall almost entirely outside of the sparse animal welfare legislation in the State?

Given the direct association between happy programmers and cats, and programming finesse and cat ownership, one must conclude that grants towards cat rescue groups and general education of the public on cat welfare can only make Ireland more attractive to the computing talent needed to fuel our strong-growth economy.

For further information on obtaining one of these computing peripherals, see www.kittenadoption.ie, www.ispca.ie or www.irishanimals.ie.

klillington@rish-times.ie weblog: http://weblog.techno-culture.com