4 ms·

Especially as I think many dev jobs will disappear. More free, open source platforms that are powerful and free but just need some configuration, customization

by rb808 9y ago

Especially as I think many dev jobs will disappear. More free, open source platforms that are powerful and free but just need some configuration, customization and support. Developing getting simpler to becoming just config anyway. We're already seeing this, you dont need to know anything about pointers any more, just hooking up libraries.

pm90 9y ago
At the risk of sounding utterly foolish in the future, I would say that there will always be jobs for the creative developer. The one thing that has made Software Engineering stand out from other professions is just how SE is essential/Integrated in fields outside of its immediate application. What I mean is: devs are required in Oil and Gas, Academia, Education, Manufacturing etc. apart from the regular jobs in the Computer world (i.e. Software-only companies like MS, Google). IT support will ALWAYS be required though. Unless we build some kind of AI that can diagnose issues like humans do... after which they will all become obsolete. But I don't see that happening in the next 50 years.
- AnIdiotOnTheNet 9y ago
  Technically there are still jobs for horse carriage drivers, but that doesn't mean there's a bright future in that career.
stctgion 9y ago
The languages move on but so do the expectations. Until we have star trek style computers there will always be more to it than just hooking up some libraries
- BjoernKW 9y ago
  In a way we already have Star Trek-style computers today. Many of the commands heard in Next Generation era series can be represented as SQL SELECT commands. The voice recognition is an only slightly more sophisticated Siri / Ok Google / Alexa.
rurp 9y ago
The fact that I can get a basic web app up in an hour rather than days does not mean that I only work an hour per week, it means that I can spend my time building much more complex applications.
- rb808 9y ago
  Depends on who's paying, if the client only needs a basic web app - we just need the support guy.
  - rurp 9y ago
    That frees up the developer to work on projects that would have been infeasible a couple decades ago. To put it another way, has the growth of high level languages like Python led to more jobs or fewer? I strongly suspect the answer is more.
    - rb808 9y ago
      Yes we now have more higher level Python developers, but fewer C/C++/Assembly level developers. If the trend continues there will be more configuration/customization roles in higher languages and fewer Python level devs too.
fenwick67 9y ago
I was amazed to find out last year that both my mom and dad both have a solid understanding of SQL queries - one is a nurse and the other is an insurance adjuster.
- copperx 9y ago
  How/why did they learn that? On their own? Or do Hospital and Insurance enterprise systems allow them to run raw SQL on their DBs?
  - bnjms 9y ago
    Probably they have access to a reporting system that allows safe SQL reports.
  - dragonwriter 9y ago
    > Or do Hospital and Insurance enterprise systems allow them to run raw SQL on their DBs? There's no good reason not to, since if your security and auditing systems are correctly implemented, limited-permission DB users doing direct SQL have the same security and accountability as someone using a specialized app.

by rb808 9y ago

pm90 9y ago

At the risk of sounding utterly foolish in the future, I would say that there will always be jobs for the creative developer. The one thing that has made Software Engineering stand out from other professions is just how SE is essential/Integrated in fields outside of its immediate application. What I mean is: devs are required in Oil and Gas, Academia, Education, Manufacturing etc. apart from the regular jobs in the Computer world (i.e. Software-only companies like MS, Google). IT support will ALWAYS be required though. Unless we build some kind of AI that can diagnose issues like humans do... after which they will all become obsolete. But I don't see that happening in the next 50 years.

AnIdiotOnTheNet 9y ago
Technically there are still jobs for horse carriage drivers, but that doesn't mean there's a bright future in that career.

stctgion 9y ago

The languages move on but so do the expectations. Until we have star trek style computers there will always be more to it than just hooking up some libraries

BjoernKW 9y ago
In a way we already have Star Trek-style computers today. Many of the commands heard in Next Generation era series can be represented as SQL SELECT commands. The voice recognition is an only slightly more sophisticated Siri / Ok Google / Alexa.

rurp 9y ago

The fact that I can get a basic web app up in an hour rather than days does not mean that I only work an hour per week, it means that I can spend my time building much more complex applications.

rb808 9y ago
Depends on who's paying, if the client only needs a basic web app - we just need the support guy.
- rurp 9y ago
  That frees up the developer to work on projects that would have been infeasible a couple decades ago. To put it another way, has the growth of high level languages like Python led to more jobs or fewer? I strongly suspect the answer is more.
  - rb808 9y ago
    Yes we now have more higher level Python developers, but fewer C/C++/Assembly level developers. If the trend continues there will be more configuration/customization roles in higher languages and fewer Python level devs too.

fenwick67 9y ago

I was amazed to find out last year that both my mom and dad both have a solid understanding of SQL queries - one is a nurse and the other is an insurance adjuster.

copperx 9y ago
How/why did they learn that? On their own? Or do Hospital and Insurance enterprise systems allow them to run raw SQL on their DBs?
- bnjms 9y ago
  Probably they have access to a reporting system that allows safe SQL reports.
- dragonwriter 9y ago
  > Or do Hospital and Insurance enterprise systems allow them to run raw SQL on their DBs? There's no good reason not to, since if your security and auditing systems are correctly implemented, limited-permission DB users doing direct SQL have the same security and accountability as someone using a specialized app.