Have worked in tech for many years, can develop in many languages, my thoughts: - Python is a great first language to learn as its uncompiled scripts with lots of resources and a huge market demand. - Keep in mind the most valuable work is what occurs without a user interface, for example connecting to one system to gather information and write it to a location it can then be blended with other data. Read up on ETL and data pipelines as this is hot right now. - html, css, and jsp (to a lesser extent) isn't paid well and has mostly moved offshore - java is still very popular, but more complex and without a significant salary difference. - C# and .net are honestly better left for after you have a few years of experience
Keep in mind the most valuable work is what occurs without a user interface, for example connecting to one system to gather information and write it to a location it can then be blended with other data. Read up on ETL and data pipelines as this is hot right now.
I've been away from writing heavy code almost 20 years now, but I think you are touching upon what we once called "Expert Systems" about 30 years ago? The software engineer needs to become an expert at understanding/operating the full system, then writes operating code that drives the hardware to perform all of those functions on its own. One major project I did was a rack and stack semiconductor test system to replace slow and error prone bench testing for tests that no ATE was capable of performing (at the time), we built 6 systems for manufacturing test worldwide. I had to become an expert on each peripheral (specs, calibration, communication, ranges, settle times, etc), the test methodology, the range of devices to be tested, the devices themselves, fixturing, etc. Getting everything to fit together and function properly was just the beginning. Speeding it up to increase throughput without jeopardizing quality was next. This kind of work was the most enjoyable parts of my career. I developed test time reduction strategies in the mid 1980s and later saw variations of them used by LTX, Teradyne and other big name ATE in the late 1990s. I'd love to do that kind of work again but the Semi Biz is generally not interested in hiring guys my age.
You are correct, the people most successful in this space are eager to understand the details of a process, and then look for ways to put those details into a process that can be automated. It's amazing how many times people explain a process as "too complex to be automated" but what they are really saying is "there is a bunch of disparate tasks that get called based on some if/then/else logic. Extract Transform, & Load (ETL) data processes are super hot right now - everyone needs to get data out of a vendors system, blend the data with data from in-house systems, perform additional calculations and then save that data into a database for analysts to consume. Fact is - the person doing the ETL work often understands the business process and the data better than the analysts due to the depth of interaction required. If you're looking to get back into the space, consider https://www.fiverr.com/ or https://www.reddit.com/r/slavelabour/ to get jobs that will help build your skills - no-one here gives a damn about your age, they just want a solution on the cheep.
/r/slavelabor ... LMAO!
I'll think about it, and appreciate the links. I have maybe 20 years of life left, am set financially, not sure whether I should jump back into the fray vs quietly fading into the sunset. I loved the work, the intensity, the challenge, the people. I wish I had another 20 years for my career. Much has changed in programming over the last 20 years since I last spec'd out projects and wrote code. Many new specialized languages, new devices, interface standards, cloud, etc. - I'd have a lot to catch up on to be "current" - if those newer tools are necessary/beneficial to the success of the project. And how much longer would I seriously want to accept job obligations/commitments? It would cut into my news junkie/web browsing/POAL time too. Lots to think about. My mind yearns for the challenge but I've got to face the fact that I'm getting old. My headstone will not say "I wish I worked more" on it. I'm approaching my golden years ... as I watch/have seen many of my old friends and family pass on. I don't have any kids, no one to pass the proceeds to except a few cousins and their kids. Probably better for me to just putter with my hobbies, spend time with friends and relatives, organize my stuff (I have so much "stuff" to unload) so when I do pass on I'm not leaving a headache for the beneficiaries. If I was 10-15 years younger, I'd likely jump back into it head first. The possibility had me really excited though!
Thanks for your thoughts fren
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