Kenny To

I do work with the programmers, but not very closely. I work a late shift, so whenever we escalate issues, our programmers are usually off site, so communication is via email and phone. Most of them are really friendly and I've been attending their monthly programming talks to learn what I can. We are mainly a Micro$oft shop, so I've been told to learn C# and ASP.NET as much as I can, until the economy turns around and they start hiring again. However, I still prefer Java and C++, since that's what I've been studying at the local city college.

I'm looking through JR and I like what I'm reading, so I'm glad I found this site. I am looking for ways to build up more experience, and from browsing around on this site, all signs point to open source projects and tinkering with existing open source code. Reading Head First Java is helping a lot already, and so my next goal is to find some open source projects I can work on. I will post here or comment on your blog if I make some progress.

I feel the same exact way. How does one enter the software development field requiring x years of experience, without any experience to start with? I come from an EE background, but decided to switch to software development because I later found this to be my true interest. My track seems similar to yours, but I am behind since I am currently still in a support position in my company. The current economy is cruel and trying to advance to a software development position or even one in QA proves to be difficult. Searching for a position outside of my company runs me into the dreaded catch 22.

I finished taking some classes at my local city college, but have lost the momentum due to lack of any luck in job hunting. I was recommended by a friend to read Head First: Java, so that's how I found this site. Your blog provides an inspiration and some helpful tips for me. Just really glad I'm not the only one out there with this problem. Looking forward to reading more.

Also, this is my first post. So hello everyone!