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Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

theregister.com

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Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#61

Post by codetrotter »

TrackerFF wrote: post #58
mmastrac wrote: post #20

I love writing Rust, but I was really surprised by how difficult it was to find a job _actually_ writing Rust. I'm happy to see the increased activity in the space, but searching for a job in Rust is probably still 10x harder than C or C++. It worked out in the end, and I'm happy to be getting paid to be writing Rust every day, but I hope that the market for Rust jobs continues to grow -- ideally even faster than it…

We acquired a product last year, where the entire back-end was written in Rust. Unfortunately, Rust developers were hard to get by, and we didn't have any internally that could maintain the Rust code at such scale. The entire back-end ended up being re-written.

Nooo :'(

Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#62

Post by StewardMcOy »

secondcoming wrote: post #46
rockwotj wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On the reverse side of things, trying to find a C++ dev is usually harder than finding people who want to write Rust.

Yup, we were hiring C++ devs recently and it was quite common for candidates to mention Rust. Did they not read the job description??? Immediate red flag.

I've been a C++ dev for most of my career. Not looking to change jobs at the moment, and I like C++ a lot. We still occasionally start new projects in C++ where I work. I've tinkered with rust in my spare time, but never introduced it at work. I think the borrow checker is a fantastic tool, but Rust has just never been the right tool for the domain we're in.

But I'm a bit confused by your statement. There's a lot of overlap in the domains that C++ and Rust serve. Isn't it a good thing for job candidates to have an interest in learning about other approaches to their work? To understand what makes C++ better or worse than Rust in difference circumstances?

Why would a mere mention of Rust be a red flag?

Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#63

Post by risyachka »

jimbob45 wrote: post #59
secondcoming wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yup, we were hiring C++ devs recently and it was quite common for candidates to mention Rust. Did they not read the job description??? Immediate red flag.

Are you not a developer? Being proficient in one means that it will take very little time to transfer to the other. C++ and Rust have a great deal of overlap in that way.

It only works one way though (at least in this case). If you know C++ you can quickly become proficient in Rust.

But not the other way around.

Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#65

Post by beeboobaa »

TrackerFF wrote: post #58
mmastrac wrote: post #20

I love writing Rust, but I was really surprised by how difficult it was to find a job _actually_ writing Rust. I'm happy to see the increased activity in the space, but searching for a job in Rust is probably still 10x harder than C or C++. It worked out in the end, and I'm happy to be getting paid to be writing Rust every day, but I hope that the market for Rust jobs continues to grow -- ideally even faster than it…

We acquired a product last year, where the entire back-end was written in Rust. Unfortunately, Rust developers were hard to get by, and we didn't have any internally that could maintain the Rust code at such scale. The entire back-end ended up being re-written.

What happened to the developers who wrote the back-end in the first place?

Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#66

Post by oaiey »

timeon wrote: post #2

I upvote almost any post "in Rust" here (yeah that's me) but this story went bit too far. It was just one job posting and so many sites acts like MS is going to ditch C#.

Totally agree. The .NET team itself is probably costing above 100 million every year, probably more. Microsoft is not ditching .NET, they are heavily investing it.

The office division is implementing some code in Rust while the same division just posted a success story of their usage of migrating some low latency server code to .NET Core.

Microsoft is a big company and like any other they use JS, TS, Rust, C++, Python, Go and so on. The only thing they do not use is Java ... And I am not 100% confident there.

So let us congratulate Rust for entering the office domain and stop writing swan songs about .NET.

Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#67

Post by ducktective »

TrackerFF wrote: post #58
mmastrac wrote: post #20

I love writing Rust, but I was really surprised by how difficult it was to find a job _actually_ writing Rust. I'm happy to see the increased activity in the space, but searching for a job in Rust is probably still 10x harder than C or C++. It worked out in the end, and I'm happy to be getting paid to be writing Rust every day, but I hope that the market for Rust jobs continues to grow -- ideally even faster than it…

We acquired a product last year, where the entire back-end was written in Rust. Unfortunately, Rust developers were hard to get by, and we didn't have any internally that could maintain the Rust code at such scale. The entire back-end ended up being re-written.

>The entire back-end ended up being re-written.

In Go, I presume?

Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#68

Post by wredue »

godzillabrennus wrote: post #56
diego_moita wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agree, I am still looking for a Rust position, although I have more than 3 years of experience with it. And yes, it is very hard. It seems Rust is in a chicken/egg position: employers avoid it because "there are few developers", developers avoid it because "there are few jobs". Until recently the majority of Rust jobs were blockchain stuff. Now I see a rise in network infrastructure and security.

Seems like RUST needs work to become easier to learn. Hard for a business to take a risk on using it (outside of a use case absolutely needing a memory safe language) if the talent pool is shallow.

Honestly. Rust is not all that “difficult”. There’s just SO MUCH that you MUST know to be effective.

You need to know all of the rustisms. Plus you need to have a general knowledge of memory. You need to understand how memory is being abstracted and how to work within those constraints so as not to be slow. You need to know all of the monads, what they mean, why each exists, what the nuance is, and why you might use one over another in a specific situation.

It’s not difficult so much as it just takes so much time and challenging-yourself practice to try to memorize everything.

A “being effective at rust” book would probably dwarf a “being effective at C++” book in pages assuming similar prose. And we all know how much of a beast C++ is.

Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#69

Post by rowanG077 »

TrackerFF wrote: post #58
mmastrac wrote: post #20

I love writing Rust, but I was really surprised by how difficult it was to find a job _actually_ writing Rust. I'm happy to see the increased activity in the space, but searching for a job in Rust is probably still 10x harder than C or C++. It worked out in the end, and I'm happy to be getting paid to be writing Rust every day, but I hope that the market for Rust jobs continues to grow -- ideally even faster than it…

We acquired a product last year, where the entire back-end was written in Rust. Unfortunately, Rust developers were hard to get by, and we didn't have any internally that could maintain the Rust code at such scale. The entire back-end ended up being re-written.

Why not just learn rust? It really is not that exotic to learn. I doubt it is faster to rewrite it.

Re: Microsoft seeks Rust developers to rewrite core C# code

#70

Post by [deleted] »

candiddevmike wrote: post #50
xedrac wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Given your username I suspect you're quite a bit older. I've mentored several grey beards on Rust and they weren't at all happy about it, at first. After a few months though, they were some of its strongest advocates. It's hard to not love Rust when you realize just how much pain it saves you from.

What pain does it save most folks from that are using GC languages (as GP alluded to)? Genuinely curious.

[deleted]
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