Software development as a profession hasn't been around for long enough to draw any generational conclusions from.
Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
71–80 of 303 posts
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#72> Software engineering reliably undergoes a major technology shift at least every 10 years. From web to mobile? What was the tough bridge to cross in the last 10 years?
Yes, web to mobile. Native mobile development is a hugely different beast from web programming, just as web development was a huge shift from desktop GUIs in 2000, desktop GUIs were a huge shift from DOS and other microcomputers in 1990, microcomputers were a huge shift from UNIX and VMS and other timesharing OSes in 1980, and timesharing OSes were a huge shift from batch-processing on IBM & other mainframes in 1970.
It's interesting that you say the transition has happened between web and mobile, because of a lot of people I know are getting up to speed in HTML 5, and are betting the next few phase of their careers on it. Maybe it's because South Africa is a few years behind the curve, but is there evidence that the share of web-based jobs is declining enough to be concerning, in the first world?
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#73I just had dinner with two other devs tonight I randomly met at PyCon. Both of them do contract work, and have to turn away work. Neither of them ever specialized in any particular language; they both just focused on using code to solve problems.
There's always going to be a need for people who can walk in to a new situation, diagnose what's going well and what needs to be fixed, and carry that out.
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#74Are there really people out there who actually believe that programmers are washed up by the time they hit 30? I'm not kidding... do people really believe this? I always thought that was a fairy tale that employers tell to still-wet-behind-the-ears kids in order to pump up their egos so that they work untenable hours for meager pay
Yes, it has nothing to do with productivity but definitions. After 30 programmers see more options and its harder to keep them as cubicle/hipster drone.
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#75Are there really people out there who actually believe that programmers are washed up by the time they hit 30? I'm not kidding... do people really believe this? I always thought that was a fairy tale that employers tell to still-wet-behind-the-ears kids in order to pump up their egos so that they work untenable hours for meager pay
Yes, it has nothing to do with productivity but definitions. After 30 programmers see more options and its harder to keep them as cubicle/hipster drone.
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#76Lets see every 20-30 year old we have brought in the past 3 years: A) Is so arrogant they think they know it all. Then when they turn in the code it's barely passable and it become clear they are going to be difficult to work with. B) Are overly emotional and they all take things way too seriously. Now every 35+ person we have brought in for a project is: A) Professional. Gets the job done and very well. B) Sees the…
When I was a programmer in my 20s, I saw the same among my peers and tried to emulate an engineer in my 30s. I stayed mature, tried to focus on the big picture and was always open to advice from elders because I didn't know squat yet and was aware of it. Just by doing that I excelled in many areas, and now as a n almost 40 year old developer I try to hire people who act like I did, and believe me they're out there.
When I was in my early 20s, did consulting stints while in grad school. One of my jobs, the senior engineer was a former Bell Labs white beard (literally) with his first 'program' hanging on his office wall :)
I remember most of my age group had enormous respect for the older engineers. But then, we didn't have Google and Wikipedia and entirely too facile access to information that lends the patina of 'knowledge' that is so easily obtained these days. So a lot of the aggressive posturing these days is really a symptom of the not knowing that you don't know that much yet ..
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#77I don't buy it. There are people of all ages on my team, and the same has been true at several other jobs I've had in the past few years. There is not even a particularly strong correlation between age and seniority.
My second observation is that in all the jobs I've had where this was not true, the company has not been particularly successful in the long run. It's unclear whether this is related, but it's interesting.
However, I can come up with an alternative statement that may be a better explanation of what some people seem to observe: if you are not a really good engineer by the time you turn 40, and you expect to be paid based on your "years of experience", get a plan B.
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#78We work in a, relatively speaking, very young industry. It's very hard to draw conclusions by looking back at 20 years ago. Being in a young and highly-demanded industry pushes a lot of us into managerial positions earlier than normal. But essentially, I believe that a developer's age doesn't matter if he/she doesn't stop learning.
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#79More options: - Go solo. At 40 you should be experienced enough to handle up to mid-sized projects, alone and on a reasonable time-frame. Try to pick projects that your clients will actually use, with new features and support contracts you will have steady income for the long-term. - Go startup. Stop thinking you need to come up with the next über-for-x. There are plenty of opportunities for small sass shops that cat…
> At 40 you should be experienced enough to handle up to mid-sized projects, alone and on a reasonable time-frame
At 25...
Re: Programmers: Before you turn 40, get a plan B (2009)
#80I don't know a single software dev over 40 who isn't employed, and I know many that age. None of them had to change fields. Some are managers, but most are "senior" devs. Many of these guys have been programming internet technologies since the later 90's. It seems in the places I've lived (LA, DC) the salaries are pretty squashed together after 5 years experience. Basically anyone with that experience is getting a si…
pay squash is why you should get out of field. engineering is the new proletariat, working at companies that rake in millions for pennies, while all managers above you get twice your pay just by organizing your time.