[Wylug-discuss] What Distro to give away....

[Christopher Brown]

2008/10/12 Phil Foxton <phil at thefoxtons.org.uk>:
> On Sun, 2008-10-12 at 00:33 +0100, Alex Howells wrote:
>> Lee Evans wrote:
>> >> And my advice to people considering a career in IT? Don't do it unless
>> >> you have a real passion for it, the starting salaries are poor and the
>> >> work menial, it can take 10 years, and a real talent, before you start
>> >> seeing decent money.
>> >
>> > This is one of the daftest comments I've ever seen on the Wylug lists - an
>> > incredible generalisation, and an inaccurate one that that.
>>
>> Second this comment. I've done about 4 years of contract and part-time,
>> before a couple of years of full-time employment.  Whilst I'm still a
>> relatively young 'un I'd say I'm having a decent enough time in IT.
>>
>> If you're defining "decent money" as £50k and expecting that with a very
>> small amount of experience then I'd just say you're being unrealistic,
>> so perhaps some clarification is in order?
>
> Oh how quick people are to comment without understanding the person
> making the comment, what's that saying? Oh yes, to truely understand a
> man walk a mile in his shoes...

Sure, but we're not discussing _your_ experience of I.T., we are
discussing the general overview. Let's take your points as you put
them:

> Don't do it unless you have a real passion for it

Agreed. Same goes for any job.

> the starting salaries are poor

Could do with a definition of "poor" but this is nonsense in general.
I consider myself to be earning a good starting salary, as are, from
the top of my head, two of my post-grad friends from university.

> the work menial

Again, nonsense. My work could not possibly be any less menial.

> it can take 10 years, and a real talent, before you start seeing decent money.

Utter twaddle. I consider myself to be earning "decent money" after
less than a year in a serious I.T. role. Admittedly I do work bloody
hard for it but I love it and would never change.

> FWIW I have 20 years experience in IT, I have seen the great times, the
> good times, and the absolutely abysmal times.  So those that have had 4
> years experience in IT (or less or slightly more), shut up until you
> know just what you are talking about, and I suggest that shortly you
> will see just how bad the IT job market can get (speaks someone who was
> working in IT during the last two recessions)
>
> I still stick by my "Don't do it" comment as I feel that IT is not a
> worthwhile career to be starting out in now.  Not that I iam going to
> change career, just I don't think it would be a wise choice for someone
> leaving school now, especially with the world market about to become
> saturated by more off-shore workers, now that China is opening up more.

As for your slightly xenophobic daily mirror-style comments about
foreign workers coming in and taking all our jobs, save it for the
passengers in the rear of your London taxi cab. Everyone said the same
thing about the opening of the borders within the E.U. and quite
frankly, if we are unable to compete in the job market then we are in
the wrong job.

Regards


-- 
Christopher Brown

http://www.chruz.com