Keeping Up with the Technology 3

[Terpsfan]

I started out in the programming field about 3.5 years ago. I'm finding it very difficult to keep up with all of the technology. It seems like I fight to keep my head above water. I started out doing Microsoft Office type stuff with Excel and Access, then gravitated towards exclusively Access. This is after having no education or background at all in computers. Then there was ASP, SQL Server...different versions of Office/Access/SQL Server. Lately it's been .NET(VB.NET/ASP.NET/C#). I basically teach myself the new technologies but finding it impossible to keep up with all the new versions of Office, Windows, Visual Studio, SQL Server, etc.

Then I say, hmmm, I need to get some certs like MCSD, MCDBA, etc.

Of course when I started I went about things the wrong way but I created stuff that worked. Now I am creating applications in a more object-oriented fasion, which takes a lot more planning and expertise.

Sometimes I feel I am stupid, other times I feel overwhelmed, other times it just feels like there is a lot out there to know. I find myself having a hard time developing a focused plan for learning all this. I tend to go from one technology to the next, or one book from the next, without becoming a master of any.

From a learning standpoint I am not sure if it is better to be an expert at least one thing or a jack of all trades.

I'm just wondering if there are other like-minded people who become overwhelmed with the wave of technology.

 

[downlow]

Learning for learning's sake is fine, but how about goals?

You will NEVER know everything, but you can achieve a goal. Set some for yourself... find a job doing X, build an application that does Y.

The best 'goal' IMHO is find a corner of the world where you are challenged, rewarded, and mostly satified. Note that this may not require .NET.

downlow

 

[CajunCenturion]

I think your situation is caused primarily by not having an education background in computers. I certainly applaud your efforts to learn and accomplish that which you have over the past 3.5 years, but I think the reason that you "sometimes feel stupid" and other times overwhelmed, is that you're lacking in the basics and fundamentals. You, undoubtedly understand quite a few of the nuts and bolts of the tools that you've used, but that doesn't always provide much help in absorbing a new technology. However, understanding the underlying theory behind those nuts and bolts can almost always be applied in learning new technologies, by significantly reducing that which you have to learn. Rather then spend time learning the “what” and the “why”, you can focus on simply the “how.”

Do you want to be an expert in one thing or a jack of all trades? A big part of that answer lies in the lifespan of that which you choose to be an expert. Tying back to my previous paragraph, do you want to be an expert in SQL Server, or be an expert in Relational Database Management? For someone who knows the nuts and bolts of SQL Server, but lacks an understanding of the theory behind relational database management which have more trouble learning Oracle that someone who knows nothing about SQL Server, but fully understands the concepts and theory of relational database management. Given a choice, I would prefer to be an expert in Relational Database Management. If my choices are SQL Server and Oracle, being jack is just fine.

With respect to vendor certifications, they in no way, shape, fashion, or form replace the value of a good education. They might help you (depends on how much effort you put into it) learn a vendor’s product and help you get a job, and in return allow you to be a walking billboard for the vendor. But that won’t provide you much long-term benefit unless who stay with that vendor, and corresponding product line, for long periods of time.

Good Luck
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As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[Terpsfan]

Actually I don't think the lack of a background in computers in my past is a bad thing. The main thing you need is a desire to learn and maybe more importantly, the time to do so. My point is that the acceleration of change in the computer field is so great, no one can really keep up. By the time you get one version of Office down or one version of Visual Studio down, there comes along a new version. Then there are technological advances such as wireless technology that change the landscape for all of the technologies.

I would argue that I am well versed in the fundamentals. I know about creating classes, normalization of data, etc. It's the advanced aspects of object oriented programming or the advanced aspect of database design that are sometimes hard to deal with. I find that it is rare to find a computer book that is able to describe the advanced aspects of OOP to the lay person.

 

[CajunCenturion]

I find that it is rare to find a computer book that is able to describe the advanced aspects of OOP to the lay person.

That's a statement that would probably make a good thread in the "Making an Impression" forum. The intermix of "advanced aspects" with the term "lay person" could make for an interesting discussion.

Good Luck
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As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[uptodate]

First of all, do not ever feel the way you do. At times it can seem overwhelming with the advances being made in technology and those changes finding their way into your work.

Unlike Cajun, I don’t feel your lack of a computer education is the basis for your feelings, but rather I think you are feeling pressured, or placing undue stress on yourself.
I have an education in education, not computer science, information systems, etc., and have worked as a sys admin for Fortune 500 companies and the Government, managing high-performance, mission-critical systems, and do not feel my lack of a formal computer background causes me to be less capable than someone with a formal computer science education.

As for the “jack-of-all-trades” versus the “specialized expert,” it depends on what you prefer to do and what type of company you prefer to work for. At large Fortune companies, the IT staffs are large (1000+) and are very specialized. Because of this specialization, a company of this size typically hires someone who has a few years of experience in the area they are applying, such as, security, which may be broken into 2 or 3 specialized areas itself. The pay is generally higher for a specialist than a generalist, however, there may be fewer job opportunities available, and also the specialist may be limited in opportunities because of past salary that other companies think you will expect. Small and medium size companies usually hire generalists who can do networking, programming, tech support, etc., because they don’t have the revenue to hire 50 people all with a different specialty to meet their operational goals, but they also don’t expect their staff to have the in-depth knowledge of an expert in a field.

Decide which size company you want to work for first and go from there.

 

[chiph]

It seems like I fight to keep my head above water.

That's the software industry for you. There's always something new coming out.

My first boss out of college switched from mainframes to the (then new) IBM PC, as he figured it was small enough that he could conceivably know everything there was to know about it. Within 18 months he realized he was already behind.

My advice is: don't worry about not knowing everything. The important thing is knowing where to go look things up, and to realize when you need more info.

The second need is (maybe) more important -- without that little voice saying "maybe I don't have all the information I need", you won't take the next step to go research the problem.

The trick is to keep on learning. Otherwise you get pigeonholed like mainframe programmers are. Yes, they get paid well. But they run the risk of their hardware being obsoleted and being out of a job with little chance of finding another in their city.

I figure you should always be an expert in a technology that is current, and be learning about the next-big-thing. Sometimes a job change is required to get that.

Chip H.


If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ222-2244 first

 

[cluksha]

I have to admit - I often feel the same way. Overwhelmed and mostly without direction. I am continually felling - "How can I go out and get a job doing what I like when I am currently a 'jack'?" I really love web design and all it's aspects - Design, back end programming, MMColdFus in my case, Database development. And I too learned by jumping in both feet first.

I never went to school to learn the basics and do feel dumb at times. And unlike you I do not know the basics as well. I am a rogue programmer at best. I can learn any new language fairly easy, in my opinion, but it is usually not the best structured or optimized because I don't know the underlying strategy. The program functions.

But then again I am doing so much for a small company (<50) that I have no time to figure out where I want ot focus, if at all. I am, as many are I'm sure, doing server administration, phone system administration, web development, end user support, web server admin, new web development, etc. Fortunately they have actually decided to have a web editor who does the day to day.

I am constantly feeling overwhlemed and under learned.

My venting is done. Misery love company as they say!
Chris


Whenever ther's trouble - you can call D double U!

Echo Web Services

http://www.echowebservices.com

 

[downlow]

My point is that tech will keep changing and gaining experience in a business aspect is what helps to keep a career grounded.

Would you rather know how to program in language X perfectly and little about <insert your business area here>, or know all of the programing needs, concerns and related issues regarding <insert your business area here>, and enough programming to get the job done?

There is a balance, and the real world certainly hasn't been leaning towards pure tech lately (unless you live in India).

 

[infinitelo]

Part of the feelings you have of feeling dumb is your definition of smart. My way of thinking is that you can't possibly really know all that much, but if you have a solid knowege base to work from, acess to good refernce materials and the ability to use those refernces. you shouldnt ever feel dumb. The advantage of formal education is that you get a solid foundation and learn to learn in a rational, and organized manner. Dont confuse the ability to store vast knowlege in you head with being smart.

always remember computers can only count to one, the only reason there useful is because they do it really fast and can remember they did it.


if it is to be it's up to me

 

[flapeyre]

Try to keep thing in perspective - some time ago, someone figured that it would take a person eight years to read just one day's worth of new scientific information that was published. It's probably worse today.

As infinitelo said, "Don't confuse the ability to store vast knowlege in you head with being smart."

What counts is the ability to organize and utilize the information you do have.

I am an AS/400 programmer. I've been doing this for 10 years. Anytime I see a tip I possibly could use later on, I save it so I can search for it later when I need it. In the process, I've learned new things without the need for taking certification tests. And, by the way, I'm well respected within my company, and I do not have a college degree (I do have 2 years of college credits, plus 18 months learning how to program at a state vocational-technical school), nor do I have any certifications in the IT field whatsoever. None of that made any difference to anybody who hired me, because I demonstrated that I can do the job, and do it well.

The point is, stop burning yourself out to get certified in everything under the sun. In the end, it isn't worth the return on your investment. Stick to what you like to do. But at the same time, keep yourself open to new things.

By the way, the AS/400 (or iSeries/400, if you prefer) is a very stable midrange/mainframe platform which critics have been predicting the demise of for at least as long as I've been working with it. It's still here 16 years after it was introduced in 1988, and isn't going anywhere for a while.


&quot;When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the Earth with your eyes turned skyward, for here you have been, and there you will always long to return.&quot;

--Leonardo da Vinci

 

[chiph]

By the way, the AS/400 (or iSeries/400, if you prefer) is a very stable midrange/mainframe platform which critics have been predicting the demise of for at least as long as I've been working with it. It's still here 16 years after it was introduced in 1988, and isn't going anywhere for a while.

The company I worked at 2 jobs ago is a AS/400 shop. I agree -- the things just work. We had customers who IPLed (Rebooted to everyone else) only once a year, and that was just because it was suggested, not because it was needed. Since we were an ISV, we would IPL about every 45 days or so (developers are hard on a machine!).

If you're a business owner who just wants a machine that works, to run your accounting, order processing, etc., on, you can't go wrong with an iSeries.

Chip H.


If you want to get the best response to a question, please check out FAQ222-2244 first

 

[Golom]

Indeed the demise of the AS400 has been announced frequently over the last couple of decades. But then, COBOL was officially declared DOA in the seventies ... and there are still more lines of COBOL applications run every day than anything else. I think that the AS400 will outlive us all.

 

[flapeyre]

Regarding COBOL, here's a little Y2K humor:

It doesn't stop here


&quot;When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the Earth with your eyes turned skyward, for here you have been, and there you will always long to return.&quot;

--Leonardo da Vinci

 

[dilettante]

Even funnier, I notice plenty of new Cobol code being written that uses 2-digit years. There is no real effort made at windowing these or at least at documenting the windowing technique used (sliding or fixed) or the threshold.

Reminds me of Mom visiting her son Joe College and getting his apartment cleaned up. Two weeks later stuff is growing in the 'fridge again. So much for all of the money spent on Y2K.

Problem is I'm seeing it in VB code, Java code, darned near everywhere. It isn't the programming language, it's the hack programmers.

 

[flapeyre]

Still using 2 digit years? Incredible. I guess they figure they'll be long gone before 2100 (or 2039, when the window expires).

We don't use Cobol; we use RPG, which is the dominant language on the AS/400. The date fields there are ISO standard, from 0001-01-01 to 9999-12-31. The date routines in RPG even account for leap years correctly.


&quot;When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the Earth with your eyes turned skyward, for here you have been, and there you will always long to return.&quot;

--Leonardo da Vinci

 

[Stevehewitt]

I think i'm in a similar situation. I've been using just MS software, without any formal training or education.
After learning about networking in a MS enviroment, I've shifted towards Access development, and now into .net.

Now, whilst learnining .net, and trying to keep up with new technologies networking wise and continue developing my Access projects it really can seem like too much.

I've decided to do a bit of learning theory wise of .net, keep on developing my Access solution when I get the time, but have my main focus on networking.

I've actually just resigned (on Wednesday) to move to another firm where my focus will be networking, but not just MS technologies. This way my working day teaches me new stuff about networks, I have a support contract for developing access and in my spare time I can do a little of learning .net.

I think its about focusing on one area of IT work wise, but have enough background training etc, in other areas you like. Its not possible to be jack-of-all-trades in a field like IT.
By the time you've learnt eveything to know about Windows XP, Longhorn will be out!

Good Luck,

Steve.

 

[Terpsfan]

Thanks for your response everyone. I think one thing that I am doing lately that may seem a bit anal but it works for me, is to take out an index card each day and write about 1-3 different things I want to learn today. I then do what it takes to learn those 1-3 tasks. I find that i don't feel so overwhelmed and that this allows me to focus on a few pieces of the puzzle at a time, rather than focusing on the fact I don't have the entire puzzle together yet.

 

[Terpsfan]

I think the realization that I am not up to snuff in this field is starting to kick me in the butt. I have decided to take myself out of the Tek Tips forum due to the fact that I would not consider myself good enough in this field to be considered a professional. Good luck to everyone in their pursuits...

 

[MasterRacker]

Your tip about learning a couple of things a day is excellent. Technology is a never ending and ever changing puzzle. You're never going to be an expert in all of it. Don't leave us because you're feeling a little insecure about your skills.


Jeff
The future is already here - it's just not widely distributed yet...