My girlfriend and I have been doing the same thing. But like others have said, be sure to check deeply into immigration laws. For example, my country of choice, Finland, has a VERY difficult path to immigration.

You're kidding right? Don't be an idiot, follow the terms of your employer and get your own damned machine.

As a software tester at my job, my work includes:

- Building test scripts for each application (I use Google Docs spreadsheets) that we develop
- Perform feature-specific or fix-specific regular testing of applications during development cycle
- Argue with developers over severity of bugs
- Coordinate full-scale software testing before each release
- Update documentation when developers fail to do so
- Argue with developers over importance of different features in terms of development time

A big part of what makes or breaks you as a software developer is the willingness to go off the beaten path. For example, when I test, this is what I consider:

- Hmm, that's an interesting text field, and it's meant for an IP address. I wonder what happens if I type "abc::1234**!!whymeeee" into it (input validation)
- This is a resizeable dialog - if I resize it absurdly in vertical/horizontal, do elements in the dialog scale correctly?
- Here's a text area that's meant for a paragraph or two of text. If I put the Iliad into it, does the text run off the page? (bounds checking, text limit checking)
- Here's a dialog that has to validate text - what are all the possible errors it could encounter, and are the error dialogs properly implemented for each? (check all error condition handling possibilities)
- This dialog is localized into 15 languages - is the page sized/formatted correctly in all languages?
- This program is meant to be installed to C:\Program Files\Blahcompany\Product - what if I install it to a nonstandard location?

This will ultimately put you at odds with a lot of developers because your job, every day, is to make the assumption that they have made mistakes that you will find. I enjoy it, and find it to be a rewarding experience, but that's because I work at a company that highly values its software testers and takes QA as a serious priority. Try to get a feel for how this company treats QA, because if all they're doing is using you as the fall guy for bugs you made them aware of before a release, it'll be no good.

Same here. I've always disliked GoDaddy and their awful advertising and upsells. I switched to gandi.net today. Their removal of public support for SOPA is encouraging, and I'd like to think my emails to them contributed to the decision, but I'm still not going back.

...so that in 2016, when Putin is elected with 178% of the total vote, the army can subjugate the teeming masses from mammoth-back. Consequences will never be the same.

A new car built by my company leaves somewhere traveling at 60 mph. The rear differential locks up. The car crashes and burns with everyone trapped inside. Now, should we initiate a recall? Take the number of vehicles in the field, A, multiply by the probable rate of failure, B, multiply by the average out-of-court settlement, C. A times B times C equals X. If X is less than the cost of a recall, we don't do one.

Like parent says, document the hell out of everything so that they have the information they will need. After that, you're not only getting a 7K raise, but you're saving an hour and a half of your time every day, not to mention the cost of petrol? That's time you could spend with family, friends, and loved ones, taking up a hobby, or just relaxing, and that's petrol money you're saving on transit costs in addition to your raise.

Your current job sounds like it's been good to you, and there's no harm in acknowledging that. However, you're not just a cog in their company machine, you're a person with your own needs and goals. If someone else has made an offer that fits those better, the only moral obligation you have is to make the transition for your current employer as easy as reasonably possible.

I've heard it is not our god, and exists in our future. >:-D

The bean counters told me we literally could not afford to buy an LHC for seven dollars, much less seventy million. Bought it anyway. And guess what? LHC dust is PURE POISON.

I wear carpenters jeans, with the pockets on the side of the pants leg, and keep a pen and a few pieces of folded up paper in there.