The entire point of a guy in a job job is exactly the same as the point of an "evil corporation": to generate more value than people are paying you for. If you're not doing that, you're working on borrowed time.
Programming jobs going overseas is a visible result of an efficient market, but there's an invisible technological result as well, and it's much more powerful and important. Specifically, designers and architects are creating (and have always created) "Code Monkey" applications that do 80% of what we used to hire junior programmers for. I've built an app that lets me design the interfaces for my core business objects and the fields and indexes for most of my tables. Only I don't hand my designs to programmers (American citizen or otherwise.) I click a button and my app generates my SQL for the table creation, the class files for my middle tier, and all the repetitive admin pages for the tables... All the programming that's left either 1) requires a senior and creative software developer that I can't get in India or 2) is small enough and fun enough that I do it myself. Am I an "evil puppet master" treating programmers like pawns because I would rather get better code cheaply at lightning speed than hire them to create headache-inducing crap? Fine.
The first job was one I networked the year before, but it was an airline industry after 9/11. I jumped, didn't get pushed.
The second one was a telecom company that took it in the shorts when WorldCom folded up.
Three was a short-term contract through a professional IT pimping company.
The fourth one is to design a web-based adaptive distance-learning system for a major university, and OUGHT to last for years (the same way jobs one and two were.)
But jobs one and two didn't hit IT in particular; people in all departments were jumping from one and getting cut from two. All this "poor us! This industry sucks/we're too good for this" talk is great for the 2nd string prima donnas out there who haven't seen PR people getting axed (and outsourced), HR people getting axed (and outsourced), call center people getting axed(and outsourced to India or Costa Rica or a U.S. Penitentary), marketing and salespeople getting axed (and being replaced by interns and manic depressives.)
And as far as the defense department or other government agency is concerned, my dad is a personnel officer for the Air Force, and his last 4 big projects have been cutting jobs and closing facilities, so don't think there's a shelter out there. Either you suck it up move on, or you just suck.
I guess most people hit a point in their lives when they're tired of picking up new skills. I've been a developer for 10 years so far and I would rather pick up new languages/skills than wind up managing people who are picking up new skills and doing things I can't. Maybe that will change for me someday, but I tried being a manager, and I got no sense of satisfaction or accomplishment goading other people into building things... I want to be the builder!
Learning OOD/UML was FUN. Learning Java and VB.Net was FUN. It sure beat the hell out of having that niggling feeling at the back of my mind that sooner or later my superiors would figure out that I wasn't generating easily measured value and kick my ass to the curb.
Also, I've gotten most of my jobs via networking with people I've done good work for in the past, and have not been out of work more than a month a year... And I've had to find 4 jobs this year! Maybe people are moving out of the profession because they aren't differentiating themselves to the point where the folks with jobs to fill think of them first.
Oh, heck yes. Especially make them. And share them. I've been dumping freeware games out there for a few years, and it's great fun. www.winsite.com is a good place to start (deckwars is mine... I think it's on page 3 of the freeware games now.) The hot spot is www.download.com but you've got to have something killer to get in there.
No matter what career path you choose, unless you're creating something you think is cool, you aren't gonna have that great vibe. Look at the bright side: you could be halfway through your medical residency and be saying to yourself, "Oh, no, 40 years of administering liposuctions ahead of me."
Slashdot Mirror
The entire point of a guy in a job job is exactly the same as the point of an "evil corporation": to generate more value than people are paying you for. If you're not doing that, you're working on borrowed time. Programming jobs going overseas is a visible result of an efficient market, but there's an invisible technological result as well, and it's much more powerful and important. Specifically, designers and architects are creating (and have always created) "Code Monkey" applications that do 80% of what we used to hire junior programmers for. I've built an app that lets me design the interfaces for my core business objects and the fields and indexes for most of my tables. Only I don't hand my designs to programmers (American citizen or otherwise.) I click a button and my app generates my SQL for the table creation, the class files for my middle tier, and all the repetitive admin pages for the tables... All the programming that's left either 1) requires a senior and creative software developer that I can't get in India or 2) is small enough and fun enough that I do it myself. Am I an "evil puppet master" treating programmers like pawns because I would rather get better code cheaply at lightning speed than hire them to create headache-inducing crap? Fine.
The first job was one I networked the year before, but it was an airline industry after 9/11. I jumped, didn't get pushed. The second one was a telecom company that took it in the shorts when WorldCom folded up. Three was a short-term contract through a professional IT pimping company. The fourth one is to design a web-based adaptive distance-learning system for a major university, and OUGHT to last for years (the same way jobs one and two were.) But jobs one and two didn't hit IT in particular; people in all departments were jumping from one and getting cut from two. All this "poor us! This industry sucks/we're too good for this" talk is great for the 2nd string prima donnas out there who haven't seen PR people getting axed (and outsourced), HR people getting axed (and outsourced), call center people getting axed(and outsourced to India or Costa Rica or a U.S. Penitentary), marketing and salespeople getting axed (and being replaced by interns and manic depressives.) And as far as the defense department or other government agency is concerned, my dad is a personnel officer for the Air Force, and his last 4 big projects have been cutting jobs and closing facilities, so don't think there's a shelter out there. Either you suck it up move on, or you just suck.
I guess most people hit a point in their lives when they're tired of picking up new skills. I've been a developer for 10 years so far and I would rather pick up new languages/skills than wind up managing people who are picking up new skills and doing things I can't. Maybe that will change for me someday, but I tried being a manager, and I got no sense of satisfaction or accomplishment goading other people into building things... I want to be the builder! Learning OOD/UML was FUN. Learning Java and VB.Net was FUN. It sure beat the hell out of having that niggling feeling at the back of my mind that sooner or later my superiors would figure out that I wasn't generating easily measured value and kick my ass to the curb. Also, I've gotten most of my jobs via networking with people I've done good work for in the past, and have not been out of work more than a month a year... And I've had to find 4 jobs this year! Maybe people are moving out of the profession because they aren't differentiating themselves to the point where the folks with jobs to fill think of them first.
Oh, heck yes. Especially make them. And share them. I've been dumping freeware games out there for a few years, and it's great fun. www.winsite.com is a good place to start (deckwars is mine... I think it's on page 3 of the freeware games now.) The hot spot is www.download.com but you've got to have something killer to get in there. No matter what career path you choose, unless you're creating something you think is cool, you aren't gonna have that great vibe. Look at the bright side: you could be halfway through your medical residency and be saying to yourself, "Oh, no, 40 years of administering liposuctions ahead of me."