Fortunately, this sort of thing could never happen today

Posted by Mike on Thursday, August 19, 2010 - 31 views

It’s the mid-1970s, and this programmer pilot fish works for an IT service provider that supports several big insurance companies.

“We ran a huge (at that time) mainframe and a nationwide network and, of course, a large computer room,” says fish.

Read the rest of the Shark Tank here.

Hungry for IT: Staffing companies hop to fill orders as companies loosen belts

Posted by Mike on Monday, July 19, 2010 - 80 views

“(If) you’re a COBOL (common business-oriented language) programmer,” working with an old programming language, “you’ll have a harder time finding a job because there’s not as much demand for that as a web or .net developer.”

READ MORE

Programmer wisdom from the ’70s

Posted by Mike on Wednesday, April 7, 2010 - 339 views

“Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana.”

(illustration by programmers of the 1970s, showing difficulty of programming idioms logically)

Lessons learned from a long IT career

Posted by Mike on Thursday, March 25, 2010 - 366 views

* When something goes ‘blooie’, check the physical layer first!!

* As a programmer, I was under the mistaken impression that not documenting something amounted to job security. No more. Document, and keep it updated!

* As good as your skills may be, working with your peers will make everybody better.

WAIT! There is more to read… read on »

Why Microsoft .NET Jobs for COBOL Mainframe Programmers?

Posted by Mike on Wednesday, March 17, 2010 - 465 views

Considering these challenges, one is not surprised whenever a cobol programmer decides to stick with legacy programming skills.

That is why I am dedicating this post to helping cobol mainframe programmers transition their skills or careers. READ MORE

The painful truth about age discrimination in tech

Posted by Mike on Wednesday, February 17, 2010 - 263 views

There are bold programmers, but no old programmers — the reasons for this reality aren’t simple age discrimination

The Net is rife with mainframe operators and Cobol pros who will tell you that they got into IT for love of the challenge or subject. It was passion-driven. … READ MORE

Is there a way to become a programmer without going to college?

Posted by Mike on Saturday, February 13, 2010 - 266 views

But when I started, all one needed was the ability to write a little COBOL. Everything else, such as personality defects & poor social skills were overlooked. Certification has helped me – by backing up limited experience (SOA & MQ). … READ MORE

IT Careers: Retire? How about never

Posted by Mike on Monday, February 8, 2010 - 81 views

Kuhn, 62, had hoped to retire between the ages of 55 and 60, but he’s still plugging away programming mainframe systems, mostly because he’s not in a … MORE