A "new" career: programming... LAMP? Help!!!

esuhl

Hello, fellow techies!

I'm in the process of being made redundant, although I've been offered a (non-technical) position which sounds like an amazing opportunity... but just something that I'm not really interested in. So I'm thinking of taking redundancy and maybe trying to do something that I'll actually enjoy: computer programming.

I've been interested in IT since I started writing simple programs in BASIC when I was about 12. Since then I've taught myself VBA, and got a job doing nothing but VBA coding for a few months. I currently work on a second-line helpdesk for large multinational firms and provide in-house technical consultancy... but... I don't have any real qualifications or in-depth knowledge - just a jack of all trades. Most of what I do relates to in-house products and I can't see it being that easy to get another job in something that I'd enjoy.

So... I'm thinking about taking some time off to learn some new skills... maybe go on a course... But I don't know what would give me the best chance of employment. I had a look at C++ and Java a few years ago... and to be honest I found it totally befuddling. Visual Basic I find really easy, but there's not much call for it. I have written a few quick programs recently, but it's not something I do all the time.

Anyway, I've been told that knowledge of LAMP, open-source coding and web technologies would be useful, but I don't want to spend a couple of months training only to find that I have to go temping for admin work again...

So... I just wondered if anyone has tried to do something similar? Is it a good idea to learn LAMP or would something else be better? Can anyone recommend a good training course? Any other tips?

Thanks so much - any advice at all would be really appreciated!

debitcardmayhem

Look at your local newspaper web for IT jobs see who might be wanting what I used to look at http://www.computerweekly.com in my younger days but then I went for admin 5 years ago.

esuhl

Thanks - I've been scanning through some job sites... but there's so many different technologies/languages I could learn that I don't know where to begin!

There's a few LAMP jobs... but about 10 times as many results for C++, although most C++ jobs require lots of other skills (and experience) too. And I find C++ pretty cryptic.

I just can't work out what the best route into an entry-level programming job would be... or where to get just enough basic training that I can pick the rest up myself.

I'll keep looking at the job sites to see if I can find an area of programming that I could get into fairly easily.

elvch01

I don't want to burst your bubble, but there will be many "experienced" and "qualified" people also chasing these jobs, you might not find it too easy to find employment without proven skills & experience; even if you do get some qualifications. LAMP is ok (I use it all the time in my hobby stuff), but Java & any .NET technologies are where the money is at.

Lokolo

I wouldn't class VB as a language personally.

Most Software Engineering jobs are at graduate level which is your first real problem.

PROLIANT

Focus your energy on a language such as C# and learn the .NET framework inside out.
This is where you will make money quickly and become successful, if you have the C++ skill then focus on embedded design; you will expect a salary circa £40K in C++ and around £25-35K in C#, if you go contracting expect no less than £150 per day.

[Deleted User]

I'm a software engineer myself. My advice is you're not going to go far unless you've either got decades of experience or at the very least a degree. Without either and preferably both, you're CV is just going to end up being binned by an employer while everyone who's got those gets the jobs.

You need the structured education and technical thought and expertise to bring an idea from a specification to the point where you're actually able to start writing the code, which I think you'll struggle to find anywhere else. It's only when you have this knowledge that you should start to layer on different languages, because otherwise you're going to struggle to write software in a way that adheres to standard principals and of course, securely.

Learning languages is just part of the job. There's no such thing as "I don't know that one", if the project necessitates doing it a certain way then you've just got to go and learn that language. No questions. Learning new languages becomes fairly routine when you know how things work, especially the easier ones like C#.

If you really want to do it then go for it. It's not easy, it's frustrating, it's stressful, it's long hours, you'll drink more Coke than you ever thought you would be able to and you're social life may well be severely cut short but for the rewards for good engineers are limitless.

Darksun

LAMP is an acronym for Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP (although the P can sometimes stand for Perl or Python). It's basically a software stack that a lot of web services run on.

Linux is the operating system, Apache is the web server, MySQL is the database and PHP is the language the services are coded in. If that's what you want to get into then you'll be wanting to learn PHP (although Python might be a better option, and it'd be good to know both) and SQL.

PeterDuckett

If he has struggled with the concepts of Java and C#, Database design SQL and Perl or python is going to be over kill

esuhl

PROLIANT wrote: »

Focus your energy on a language such as C# and learn the .NET framework inside out.

Thanks, Proliant - .Net and C# is another option I'm considering. To be honest the money isn't too much of an issue if I'm doing something I'd enjoy as long as I can bring in £20-25k so I can pay the bills. I don't mind working hard as I'd really enjoy programming.

anewhope wrote: »

You need the structured education and technical thought and expertise to bring an idea from a specification to the point where you're actually able to start writing the code, which I think you'll struggle to find anywhere else.

Well, I know it's not much, but I have dabbled in programming since I was 12, have an A-Level in Computing, started a degree in Computer Systems Engineering at a prestigious uni (although I hated the maths/engineering so I left after the first year).

I mess about with Linux (Slackware/Zenwalk/Arch), spent the best part of a year on a contract coding VBA (don't laugh - I know VB isn't a "proper" language, let alone VBA, but it was really pushing the limits of what VBA can do, honestly!) Anyway, I find it easy to write pseudocode, so in theory I should be able to translate that into any language... In my current job, I've worked on a software project as a tester/consultant...

But I take your point. I haven't kept up-to-date with coding, haven't had any "proper" experience, and am fairly ignorant of web technologies, security, version control, etc. and I don't really know what I should expect in a work environment. I know I'd be fine working by myself on small projects, but... I'm pretty sure real work won't be like that, even if I don't expect to command a huge salary.

PeterDuckett wrote: »

If he has struggled with the concepts of Java and C#, Database design SQL and Perl or python is going to be over kill

Thanks for your honest opinion - I do worry that there's a lot to learn, but I won't know how far I can get till I try. I really just want to know the most suitable entry point - there seem to be so many technologies and languages that I'd like focus my attention on one or two areas to begin with. LAMP seemed like a good idea as I like the clean logic of Linux, PHP seems easy, and Apache/MySQL seem useful (though probably difficult-ish for a newbie like me). Even if I can get a job where writing a bit of code is a tiny part of what I do, I'd be happier.

Thanks again to you all for your suggestions.

fwor

esuhl wrote: »

Even if I can get a job where writing a bit of code is a tiny part of what I do, I'd be happier.

I reckon that's a worthwhile ambition.

One other thing that you should bear in mind is that there is a tedious and unglamorous side to it as a career. For a short while I went into programming, and I thought I was really going to like it. But once the formal training was out the way, I entered a small development team and, being the "junior", was only ever given code maintenance work. Believe me, fixing errors in other people's code is not fun, because you are almost always making the best of a bad job - you are never (usually) given enough time to re-write it the way it should have been written in the first place. After about a year a was lucky enough to be able to shift myself sideways into a different career, and I'm glad I did.

BTW, if you have a spare PC lying around, it's not hard to run up a LAMP server to play around with - I tried it recently as part of a project to build a forum based on PunBB, and it took less than 2 hours from start to finish, with no real prior knowledge, using one of the many How-to's out there. It won't make you an instant expert (obviously) but it does get the basic concepts into your head.