Have you ever used a cheap overseas programmer for a big job?

[mrmax]

Like from elance or Rant a Coder?

How did it go?
Was it really way cheaper than using a local programmer? And was the quality of the job well done?

[badboysfilms]

Like from elance or Rant a Coder?

How did it go?
Was it really way cheaper than using a local programmer? And was the quality of the job well done?

For great database program India for graphics E. Europe put them together one great site and 3/4 less than here that is what I am told, I mean, Ah I mean I would never use them of course. Built in the USA only!

[xIodinex]

From all I've noticed, Elance has a pretty good system going to filter out the crappy sign-ups and get right down to serious freelancers. I would go with a bidder from Elance if I needed any work done of that sort.

[gaybucks_chip]

For web design, I'd have no problem going with an offshore coder.

For software development, it's much more of a mixed bag. If you are marginally fluent in coding yourself, then it can potentially be sensible to work with an offshore programmer, but the problem is, unlike a web design where it either works or it doesn't, a software application can, worst case, have hidden backdoors, time bombs, etc and best case simply have bugs or problems that don't show up until sometime later after the application is deployed.

Of course, the same issues are true with US coders, but the issues I've run into is often times the offshore coders will cut corners and charge you for a totally custom application when they're really just customizing some standard open source app, or else they'll take something written for another purpose and sort of jam the code to your application. I haven't seen as much of that with US-based coders.

And the other issue is... if you're working with an outsourced company instead of an individual freelancer, you might have 3 or 5 or 10 people building your application, so you can have a mishmash of code of variable quality, and you're also more likely to run into translation issues because the project manager you speak to is usually not one of the programmers, and sometimes isn't even terrilbly technical.

So... I wouldn't say don't do it, but I'd also say be very careful and be prepared to really micromanage the project if you want something that ends up being really high quality.

[badboysfilms]

For web design, I'd have no problem going with an offshore coder.

For software development, it's much more of a mixed bag. If you are marginally fluent in coding yourself, then it can potentially be sensible to work with an offshore programmer, but the problem is, unlike a web design where it either works or it doesn't, a software application can, worst case, have hidden backdoors, time bombs, etc and best case simply have bugs or problems that don't show up until sometime later after the application is deployed.

Of course, the same issues are true with US coders, but the issues I've run into is often times the offshore coders will cut corners and charge you for a totally custom application when they're really just customizing some standard open source app, or else they'll take something written for another purpose and sort of jam the code to your application. I haven't seen as much of that with US-based coders.

And the other issue is... if you're working with an outsourced company instead of an individual freelancer, you might have 3 or 5 or 10 people building your application, so you can have a mishmash of code of variable quality, and you're also more likely to run into translation issues because the project manager you speak to is usually not one of the programmers, and sometimes isn't even terrilbly technical.

So... I wouldn't say don't do it, but I'd also say be very careful and be prepared to really micromanage the project if you want something that ends up being really high quality.

Everything you said above is true, so it is wise to see that persons ratings or even company ratings, I would make sure you can work with anyone you choose. If you can communicate well with each other and I really think this is important, you should be ok.

[gaybucks_chip]

Ratings can be really misleading.

There are plenty of cases on Elance where the contractor has literally bought a positive review from an unhappy customer by discounting the price. In a few cases, Elance has actually interceded and revoked bidding privileges from companies that were found to be doing this on a large scale, but it happens a lot more than they are willing to admit. We've had vendors try to do that with us more than once.

Likewise, communications are only so much of the project. I've had project managers that I had lengthy emails or IMs with that I thought had a very clear understanding, only to receive code back that grossly missed the mark, or an application that basically worked, but when you looked at the underlying code, it was the biggest mismash of kludged-together routines from other applications that it would be a nightmare to fix or modify if a bug cropped up or an additional feature was needed. Or, in a couple cases, a project manager that communicated wonderfully and promised the moon, but nothing was ever delivered on time or as agreed... they'd always be quick with the heartfelt apologies, which were followed by more delays and problems.

And there have been some great experiences as well. There's one coder I wish I could find... I'm afraid he may have passed away... who did amazing work, that always worked perfectly the first time, was delivered on time, and in budget. But those guys are few and far between in my experience.

In my opinion, the only really safe way to approach working with an offshore coder is to start with something very small and non-critical, evaluate what the experience was like (were they on time, did they do it right the first time, was the code clean and well written, were they responsive and readily available) and only then move on to a larger project. Even then, it's still a little iffy.

In short, it can work well, but you have to be really, really careful. I've been using offshore coders and designers for a bit over 10 years, and even with that experience, I still get snookered every now and then.