Programmers over 45 or so make up a pretty small fraction of the total, so arguably excluding them simply doesn't matter that much. And the ugly secret of soft

Programmers over 45 or so make up a pretty small fraction of the total, so arguably excluding them simply doesn't matter that much. And the ugly secret of software development is that almost all of it doesn't matter either, thus greatly limiting the true need for the expertise that older programmers bring. I'm old. My advice to those who are aging: Accept that positions involving stupid software tricks for huge bucks will dry up for you. Instead, look for work that's truly useful. It doesn't pay much, which means there's a scarcity of candidates, which means that they tend to value skill over youth. And it's your chance to plant those trees that you'll never sit under.