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In summer 2006, while being on vacation in the middle of my master's studies, I also had an opportunity to study at an English language course abroad. Westbourne Academy became the language school of choice. At a glance, a few intensive weeks of studies might not seem as particularly much. However, the language atmosphere also played an important role. Since I was sent there absolutely alone, I had to resolve all the issues in English. (Actually, some minor issues started already before my onward connection flight, which was slightly delayed due to an unplanned software upgrade.) As I usually say: "When one is forced, he can do everything." The school was just 30 minutes walk from my local accomodation. (Even though some people who have seen my walking might suggest doubling that time for themselves. Perhaps, they would rather call it "race walking" instead.) The host family could also speak only English. Finally, the fact that the school introduced a fine of 10p for every word that was not in English could also be seen as an additional motivation for us to practice English. Or as a complement to their business model. Somehow, I was not fined even once. Perhaps, I am too stingy. Sorry if I damaged their profitability!
My lessons took place during mornings, all the afternoons were considered as "free time". Most of my classmates spend their time at beaches – which were marketed as being among the best in Europe. (Note: Beaches were marketed, not classmates.) During evenings my classmates prefered hanging out at clubs. None of that was really my cup of tea. Instead, I spent some time walking around and taking a huge amount of photos. Some were calling me "paparazzi at work". During weekends the school usually organized local tours with excursions – those fees I was more eager to pay.
One day I noticed a thick telephone book called "Yellow Pages" and became quite curious whether I could find any local software businesses there. After a couple of evenings I had a list of new "places of interest" together with their marked locations on the map. Even though the central area of Bournemouth is relatively compact, I still needed to do some planning of my route. After printing a few copies of my CV I began visiting the local companies. Starting with a phrase "Hello, I am a software developer. Could you have work for me, by any chance?" The vast majority of companies did not take me seriously. Nevertheless, at two places people decided to spend their valuable time talking to me. The best place turned out to be the most central – just in the middle of the town. After some interviews and a challenging programming test (done on paper!) I received my verdict: "Come back when you finish your master's studies!"
If they took me seriously, I should take them seriously too. I came back in autumn 2007 and repeated the same phrase "Hello, I am a software developer. Could you have work for me, by any chance?" The answer of the managing director was: "I think that I remember you!" Hearing that was a good sign. What followed was a few interesting years of my work for Eurosoft (UK) Ltd.
Working for a computer diagnostics software company normally means development of code that is "close to the hardware", which is the whole point of hardware testing. Usually, the development was done in C and C++. Most often there was a mixture of those two across different modules. A couple of times I had to use Python. When the data needed to be sent between applications, XML format was used. Sometimes, use of third-party libraties was needed. In other cases WMI was the source of diagnostics information. The main focus of my work was development of diagnostic tests for various hardware components. Some products I had to re-engineer to make them meet new standards. In my last product I developed remote access capability and generation of PDF reports for summarizing diagnostic results.
But there was a drawback as well. The original plan was to work at their UK office after receiving my work permit. However, UK Border Agency had other plans. My work permit application was rejected. Not due to incorrect documents but purely on the grounds of internal guidelines. The company tried to appeal – the appeal was rejected. Another appeal – another reject. A new application for a business visa – even that one was rejected, but was issued a bit later after my appellation. At last I even tried applying independently under the points based system, which only resulted in another reject – most of my supporting documents were completely ignored. A few days later the whole route was closed permanently by the government. In other words, I was not welcome to work in the UK. I could only have 1-2 short visits a year, not more. Instead, I had to work remotely. While most of the world got to experience such way-of-working during the COVID-19 pandemic, my experience of working remotely started more than a decade earlier. Unlike many others, I did not like it that much. Sitting alone at home in my 20s was not good for my skills and competence. Not for my sanity either. The salary was not the only thing that mattered.