Comments on: Should You Pursue a Career In Programming?

By: masterofnone

masterofnone — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 10:43:35 +0000

Like most of you guys, I program for work, not a hobby, because I need to pay bills. I love what I’m doing, but sometimes it takes toll on my family and personal life. The stress of thinking and continuously learning, the pressures of deadline and peers depending on your submitted output, and having some a**hole programmer peers who thinks they know a lot than you do, makes this work BS for me. But don’t get me wrong, I’m trying my best to put up with these oldtimer programmers, the pressures and everything in between, because I enjoy doing what I do now. So for the question, is programming for anyone? No. Only if you have the dedication to learn and the will to stand the pressures of delivering on a tight deadline, lose sleep and feel your brain is going to explode, then yes, be a programmer.

By: jfrankcarr

jfrankcarr — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 01:56:09 +0000

Hi WatsNext,

Thanks for stopping by and commenting although I don’t really do much with this blog anymore since I’m doing C# programming these days.

Actually, I think the prospects for programmers in the US has gotten slightly better in spite of the recession. It’s not great but it isn’t as bad as some industries that you mentioned. Also, in the past 2 years, outsourcing as become less viable due to fewer talented resources being available, supply and demand at work.

By: WatsNext

WatsNext — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 03:02:09 +0000

With all this chat about how bad programming is , tell me what career is better? Not a lot of choices out there anymore, and with the economy the way it is, who wants to go into begging people to spend. I don’t see any Real Estate or Car salespeople bragging these days. I think we are all just caught in this quagmire. When business begins to boom again, the first thing they’ll be looking for are new apps fast and they’ll be willing to pay for someone not only a programmer but a real person to talk to about it.

By: Paul

Paul — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 23:27:46 +0000

Get into Sales - More money.
I was a programmer but left it because of outsourcing.

By: Mitchell Machor

Mitchell Machor — Tue, 06 May 2008 12:50:31 +0000

I am a programmer, and I feel that yes it is hard to find the great job. I specialize in forensic programming which fortunatly is in a demand. I wouldn’t give it up for anything. When it comes to programming, I do it for the love of it, not just the money. It is those who seek out the money and don’t have their heart in it that are causing people to look elsewhere. Its not just the cost of hiring a programmer, its the cost of hiring a lousy programmer.

By: Lee

Lee — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:45:58 +0000

You would have to be stupid to go into IT as an American today. It doesn’t matter how good you are, you won’t get hired because American companies will hire a H1B worker first. The H1B worker may not be as good, but he is good enough and far cheaper. And here is the key point. Even if you are far better, and will work as cheaply as the H1B worker, you still won’t get the job, because you are an American programmer. Keep in mind that many Indians and other enemy personnel are now in hiring positions, and they will never hire an American. So stay far away from IT. Go into something that is hands-on and can’t be outsourced - just be prepared to learn Spanish to talk with your coworkers.

By: arti bhadkamkar

arti bhadkamkar — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 09:50:26 +0000

my mail id is arti.bhakamkar@gmail.com

By: arti bhadkamkar

arti bhadkamkar — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 09:49:31 +0000

i want to pursue some course related to programming I am having
graduation in commerce field that too without maths will it be posible for me to pursue some course in programming kind need help of experienced people.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 18:55:59 +0000

RE: jfrankcarr

Thanks for your advice! I don’t believe I’ll be able to do software development forever. But I will as long as I can. My point about non-traditional job security is this:

Programming is something that lends itself well to an entrepreneurial approach for the same reason it lends itself to outsourcing. Ours is one of the few professions that given a laptop and electricity, we can work anywhere. I believe that job security in American IT in this post-Outsourcing world will be achieved by those who are flexible enough to fill a vaccuum. Sometimes it will be multi-year engagements, othertimes it’ll be 3-6 month gigs. But the key (IMHO) is to see the biz need in your region and market yourself effectively.

And BTW, I’m 33.

Again, thanks for the advice!

By: jfrankcarr

jfrankcarr — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 17:34:46 +0000

Hi fsilber

The emerging trend I’m seeing in offshoring is that companies are running into a talent supply problem, even in India. Skilled programmers over there have caught on to the fact that they were leaving money on the table and have demanded higher pay. Less skilled and cheaper ‘coders’ can’t fill their role but some companies still believe that they can.

And you’re right, management and sales are where the big money is located.