Getting into computing/software development/programming

I got an a at a- level computing many years ago as I was pretty good at learning programming languages. I used visual basic if I remember correctly.. However I never continued it to uni and instead went straight into work and ended up doing an unskilled job.
I just wondered if anyone in the computing/ programming field could advise me on how to get back into it?
I'm guessing a lot has changed in 15 years as I'm now mid 30s but I feel I should explore my potential instead of delivering parcels too much longer?
Thanks for any replies.

Comments

  • Neil_Jones
    Neil_Jones Posts: 8,868
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    You can download Visual Studio Community from Microsoft (free download, free to use), fire up the Visual Basic editor and see how much comes back :)

    Failing that plenty of tutorials online, however that being said:

    This is a very over-saturated market. Children learn coding at school via Scratch. Realistically if you want to do it for a living prepare to be disappointed - you're not going to create the next Facebook or Twitter overnight. You may end up doing it purely as hobby but bear in mind the other skills it gives you - logic and patience to name but two and maybe tenacity to find an annoying little bug that only manifests itself rarely...

    You may want to consider a more simple language (like Python for example) and work up from there. Visual Basic has changed a lot in the last 20 years and is now built on the .net framework.
  • motorguy
    motorguy Posts: 22,452
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    I think you'll really struggle to get traction with this.

    People your age will have maybe 15 years advantage on you in terms of experience, and people with entry level experience will work for half the money and be twice as keen.

    A saturated market and unless you've a stunning aptitude for it, you're unlikely to shine enough to make an employer commit.
  • I think you should always go for what you want to do.
    You never know...the market may be saturated but there may be opportunuities - such as you're already in a company working in a different area, and an opportunity comes up where you can train with IT or be an apprentice, regardless of age.
    So maybe learning on the side while still keeping your main job.
  • Doshwaster
    Doshwaster Posts: 6,130
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    Always remember that there are many other ways to get into software companies other than just software development. There is testing, training, installation, support, consultancy, architecture, marketing and sales, interface design, project management and (boo!) documentation to name just a few.

    If it's your first job in the sector then just grab whatever opportunity you can and then you can always move into development once you get to know the company's products and technologies better. Testing is an especially good route into development as testers get to know in detail how the software works (or is supposed to!) and will often know the product better than anyone else in the business.

    The problem you will have is being up against younger candidates, many of whom will have degrees and a lot more experience. The industry also moves very quickly. 15 years ago, Visual Basic would have been a useful skill to have but now it is irrelevant. Now it's cloud computing, mobile development and machine learning.

    So rather than dusting off your Visual Basic skills I would be learning AWS, Android/Apple development and python.
  • ACG
    ACG Posts: 23,677
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    I am a similar age to you and also did VB in college.
    I then tried to learn php and it stumped me. I can do html/CSS but in all honesty, that is just not the same. I think VB is exactly that - basic. Trying to then learn something usable in the real world is probably a big jump.

    I would download a copy have a play around and then try to teach yourself something that is used in the real world, if it sticks then give it a go.
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  • Doshwaster
    Doshwaster Posts: 6,130
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    Visual Basic (or VB.net as it is known now) is a very good training language and it perfectly decent for knocking up small standalone Windows applications. If I ever need to do a bit of coding to solve a problem then it is what I reach for.

    However, it is virtually unknown in the world of professional software development so going into an interview saying that is the only language you knew wouldn't get you very far. In fact, your CV would be thrown out straight away unless you found a very rare VB programming job - and even the jobs which require it to support legacy applications would also want other languages such as SQL, Python or Javascript on top.
  • MataNui
    MataNui Posts: 1,075 Forumite
    I was in my late 20s when i started programming (VBA and VB6) so not as though i started young. VB is very different now. VB.Net is a fully featured language though most developers prefer working with C# (the other main .Net language) so that tends to be the most often used in business. Where i work we still have plenty (probably over a hundred) VB6 applications that still need to be maintained though we are currently porting them to C#, only a couple of years ago we would of been porting them to VB.Net. So we have a mix of VB6, VB.Net and C# applications plus in other teams/areas of business will be HTML5, javascript and some other really exotic stuff that most people will never get to use.


    Not sure about the 'saturated market' comments. We are always hiring and judging by the constant stream of emails i get so are a lot of other people. All i can say is i have never been involuntarily out of work and never had any issue sourcing a contract or perm work. In fact its pretty much a case of me being able to take my pick where i work.


    What does stand out though and is alluded to by others is that this is a very experience led industry. A good CV means more than qualifications and a good CV is what you are short of. We do have a graduate scheme but that wouldnt be for you either.


    Another thing is its not just about a programming language. There are dozens of other technologies you would need to be proficient/capable with. Programmers almost always need to be proficient with database and web technologies which would be used as part of day to day work. You may also need to pick up new languages and it wouldnt be unusual to be told you need to do a specific task using some specific technology or language that you might never of had any previous exposure to. As a 'programmer this is one of your skills.



    Last thing probably. I have seen so many people come and go in this business. Someone else mentioned a 'stunning aptitude' which is an interesting turn of phrase because i really believe that there is something that makes someone just fit for this job. Its an odd mix of a logical outlook and a chaotic creative ability that means you can take a bug report and know where in tens of thousands of lines of code in a multi-threaded application thats part of a distributed system is the right place to start looking. Its just an odd thing that far more valuable than writing clever code. You can tell the people who have that. Its something that years of scratch and whatever else in school wont give you and why i think that if you have the skills then you wont have any issues finding/keeping a job in this 'saturated' industry.
  • JReacher1
    JReacher1 Posts: 4,652
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    edited 18 July 2019 at 9:08PM
    There are lots of programming jobs and age doesn’t matter.

    We normally recruit a few programmers a year from these people.

    https://codeinstitute.net/reviews/

    This is Manchester based but I am sure there are similar places all round the country.

    Don’t be afraid to change your career. You’re only in your 30’s!
  • JReacher1 wrote: »
    There are lots of programming jobs and age doesn’t matter.

    We normally recruit a few programmers a year from these people.

    https://codeinstitute.net/reviews/

    This is Manchester based but I am sure there are similar places all round the company.

    Don’t be afraid to change your career. You’re only in your 30’s!

    What a useful, kind and encouraging post.
  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 0 Newbie
    edited 19 July 2019 at 8:17AM
    Consider business computing in a medium to large organisation where SAP is the enterprise software. Look out for jobs in finance, procurement, sales administration, production or maintenance planning. Having developed skills in one of those areas - maybe for a couple of years or even less, it would be relatively straightforward to migrate to the SAP programming environment known as ABAP. This would be especially easy for someone with a good knowledge of programming techniques. There is a high demand for ABAP professionals.


    Being mid-thirties is not an issue at all. I wouldn't bother with Visual Studio/C++ and the like, or even html stuff. Too many people are going down those routes.
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