COMPUTER PROGRAMMING JOBS:pros,cons,?
553350
Like a lot of jobs, the pros and cons of being a computer programmer vary depending on what company you work for, the type of projects you work on, and your own personality and work habits.  The programming field tends to attract a lot of introverted analytical types (ie: nerds - this is a compliment, not an insult :) ) who enjoy the sense of creativity (there is something very cool about seeing a program come together), like the very analytical side to it and enjoy the fact that - relative to many professional jobs - you get to work on your own and don't "have to deal with people".  :)\n\nEntry pay (assuming you have a degree and decent grades) varies quite a bit depending on company, location, and type of work, but 50s to 60s is probably typical.  Many programming jobs offer good oppurtunities to move up (including into management) or move out and do consulting on your own.  The nature of the work makes it fairly easy to work from home (if your company culture allows).\n\nThe bad side?  Well, one of the biggest now is the large scale outsourcing of programming jobs overseas.  This has reduced the number of programming jobs and underminded the security on those that remain.  Hours can often be erratic.  Software projects are among the hardest to estimate and so there is often frantic 60-70 hour weeks leading up to major deadlines (referred to as a 'Death March').  \n\nLastly, technology changes so fast that you are constantly learning and taking classes to stay competitive.  Half of what you learn will probably be obsolete in less than two years.  This is kinda good, in that things don't get boring and you always have this sense of moving forward and being on the 'leading edge', but on the downside as soon as you really develop your expertise with a given tool, language or system, along comes a new version and you have to start all over like an intern that just walked in the door.
352884
The prospects are excellent. Your skill set sounds limited in terms of outright coding experience, but you would probably be able to find work through any number of avenues.\n\nIf you want to work for yourself, approach computer repair shops; I'm sure they get requests for custom software all the time. \n\nIf you want to work for a company, investigate health care and finance / insurance; they have piles of money and piles of need. That's where I make all my money.
424135
Java programmers are somewhat sought after.\n\nC++ programmers are still needed and harder to find.\n\nhttp://www.ask.com/web?q=Java+tutorial&qsrc=1&o=0
985485
Computer programming, maintnance technician, web design -- if you go through the right people and have the right stuff these can land you some preaty good jobs.
999124
languages like c and cpp are very basic and can be mastered at any stage of time. At present it will probably be more difficult to grasp and after say 5 years, the same thing will take a day.\nWhts more important is devolopment of various other faculties, creativity and all.\nMy friends who virtually knew nothing about programming picked it up at later stages and are nowadays working with top software firms.\nHowever, each person is unique , if he feels inclined towards it, he should definitely go for it.\nhope it helps.\nRegards
215154
Learn how to program in various computer languages or get someone to build it for you.
499211
Yes. If you become a web developer you have good challenging work. You can earn good as well. So its a good career option.
959362
I have looked into this and have friends who are programmers and the research and my friends all say C# has the best job opportunites. C# is a newly used language so I would be sure that C# is the way to go.
163962
Well programers get paid a lot but that is b/c its really hard and really boring, to me it is. Web design is a good one b/c its something different eeverytime. Plus they get paid well too. I am and IT person in the hospital. I am IT support. I get paid well for troubleshooting problems. I like it because I learn about the computer everyday that I am at my job. Also its something new almost everytime. Really its all about what you want to go in. I would try them all and see what you think is better. I tried them all and this is what I found.
189755
I would say it depends upon what you're looking to do with it.\n\nI started with Basic as a kid and worked my way into Pascal, C, and C++.  Was it better to go this way than to learn assembly or other low-level methods?  Since I mostly needed to rapidly develop solutions as opposed to developing low-level functionality like drivers, BIOS and such, it worked out just fine for me.
560614
Don't forget that your question is open to a world wide forum!\nA computer programmer may know any number of programming languages.  You would be better to specify which language you require.\n\nAre you willing to pay costs if someone can travel to the Bay Area?\nHow long will you require the services of a programmer?
269459
Over the last decade, my whole career has been affected by computers.  I left my "real" job back in '96 to start an Internet Design company, which everyone told me was insane.  I worked and slaved over it for years, gained lots of clients, respect, awards, an office full of employees and then sold the company 2 years ago for a lot of $$$, and now I work out of my home as a freelancer helping other start-up companies do the same thing. \n\nWhen I was in college in the 80's, I never ever dreamed my life would turn into what it has.
137181
There are many jobs in Computer Engineering. Basically they are Hardware Engineer and Software Engineer.
1095749
WoW!!!! You will be some programmer!!!\n\nTry http://sourceforge.net/ or http://freshmeat.net/ and find it yourself.
1043410
A monumental task!\nHope yur not the sole programmer.\nI recommend staying with standard C or Cobol\nA comprehensive telecom billing system will atke you years to write.
66555
Not at all.  There are some excellent compilers and IDEs that are free so there's nothing stopping you from giving it a try (see the links I've included below).\n\nWith that said, I highly suggest that you find a language you like and stick to it.  At least until you consider yourself an excellent programmer in your chosen language.  If you're hoping to make money by coding I also suggest you pick a popular language, or at least one that will get you work:  C++, Java, VB, SQL for a widely used database, etc.\n\nOnce you've got a good knowledge of a language and how to program in general, it's really not that hard to pick up another.  I know, because I've been a developer for over 25 years.  These days I code mostly in C++ with a little Python, Java, VB and various SQL dialects thrown in -- it all depends on the job I've been asked to do.
972753
Planning on relocating to India are we?\n\nSeriously, the boom-boom IT days are pretty much over.  A huge number of IT jobs have flowed to India, China and elsewhere.  More IT jobs will be lost to overseas cheap or psuedo-slave labor markets. Is there still a market for coders in the US?  Yes.  Is it more difficult to find that kind of work?  Yes.\n\nIf you go for a full Computer Science degree, you will not have a choice in which programming languages you learn.  Also, a CS degree requires some heavy duty math courses as well.\n\nHaving said all that.  Languages I would learn today if need presented:  Visual Basic, C++, and XML, maybe JAVA.  You are better off focusing on languages like XML and JAVA that are for the web if you are thinking about taking on some of these on your own.  However, at the end of the day, employers are most impressed by the CS degree and will take those candidates over trade schools like Chubb Institute or self taught people.