The Unemployable Programmer

Honestly I don't tend to use angular with pure .net stuff. Razor and Linq handle all the templating for a single page app and data piping. Really all I'd add to the standard environment is something like this ( https://github.com/SignalR/SignalR ) so you can get real time data and refresh the page without postback.

For node work you really need it, but if you're using .net you're running a framework on top of your framework. So kind of more of a pain in the ass than you need to deal with for most things.

It's not about the hiring team looking for anything specific that a degree could give you, it's that they've bought into the old idea that the piece of paper is a hard wall that separates them from the homeless guy outside. The corollary of "I'm superior and secure in my position because of this degree" is "someone without a degree is inferior". Fear and self-doubt are the only reasons that anyone requires unrelated degrees.

Not a fan of this. I think the OP exhibits some toxic mindsets.

> As a final station, I'd like to describe what online freelancer markets look like for people like me. On freelancer.com and oDesk, you compete with hundreds of lowest-wage programmers from third world countries for exceedingly crappy "projects". It's an unmitigated race to the bottom.

Why does the OP feel entitled to not have to compete with others? Why should he be given a "not crappy" job? Because you were born in the US?

Fuck that attitude. Here's what happened. The OP stagnated, and other parts of the world didn't. Being from a first world country does not make you special. And it no longer shields you from the brutal realities that most of the world goes through with respect to human competition.

> Maybe even more alarming, the nature of these jobs has changed, too. A year ago, you could sell some landing pages and some basic web programming. Today, almost every inquiry you get is for some illicit script to scrape social media sites.

Yes, the world moves on, the nature of work changes, and things that were valuable 10 years ago become commodities. Being a programmer means being able to program many different things; you know how demands are changing, so either adapt or die. Or switch what field you work in. Construction workers can get $35 an hour, and it's better for your body.

> I feel obsolete, and I'm afraid it's starting to show outwardly.

Woe is me.

> While I was asleep at the wheel during my generic office job, the world moved on without me.

So what are you going to do about it?

> Being able to get work in this field without a fancy background is still possible, but only if you have the right connections.

So work at making those connections.

> Personally, I will just keep looking. Maybe something will turn up.

No, don't do that, it's the same shit that isn't working for you. Go to some meetups, conferences, hackathons, etc. Take a part-time job doing something else to be able to afford the time to build the connections you see as being so important. Buy books and read tutorials (and build side projects) regarding new technologies you want/need to learn. Hey I'm not saying this is the best plan, but any plan is better than no plan.

Or are "connections" your way of excusing your ego for slumping in life? I can blame others for having good genetics all day long, but I'm still going to go to the gym to improve my physique.

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Be proactive when shit hits the fan, when you miss out, when you make mistakes. There is no alternative.

Being unemployable is fucking great. You don't need to put up with any of the bullshit that comes with the 9-5. My holy shit moment was when I found a major corporation was willing to pay my year's salary as a dev for a software I created. You mean I just sell you this license at the cost of my entire annual salary as a dev without having to work 9-5 for the entire year? Fuck yeah I'll do it. An interviewer might not even have noted the sheer challenge behind designing & shipping by oneself with no pay for over a year (obviously rote memorization is of much more value), but somebody at some large company found it valuable enough to pay the equivalent of my year's salary had I been a developer. The best part is there's very little maintenance or cost involved. Just answer email and provide support. After the sale, the hard part of the work is done. I guess I could get somebody to manage the after-sales part but I really enjoy talking to my customers and the greatest thrill that it's helping their business.

Since then I've been practically unemployable. It makes no sense if I could make an entire year's worth of salary after a few phone calls and a quick demo. The only downside to this is that you have a lot of idle time. Obviously you can't do sales 24/7 (I wish I could). I'm still trying to figure out how to best use my idle time instead of obsessively commenting on HN or Reddit or playing Counterstrike. Get out? Travel? I don't know yet.

You can do this too. You absolutely can. Don't sell yourself short so you could have a 'secure' job. Don't become a slave to appease others and censor yourself to keep a job. Your time is the single most valuable asset in your life. DO NOT SELL IT FOR CHEAP. Control your destiny. This is capitalism. This is North America.

I had too much coffee, I'm out. mic drop

TL;DR: Get your money's worth. Don't waste time applying and going to interviews for a 9-5. It's not for you.

You can edit it. It's a weird nitpick, but it actually detracts from the legibility.