career in computers

[sab-rab@msn.com]

if i were interested in a career in computers, say computer information systems, are there books that someoned could recommend to get an idea of what is ahead? thanks.

[symphonix]

One thing to keep in mind is that because computers are a fairly new and rapidly changing technology, the skills you'll require will change constantly. If you are considering computers as a career, then be prepared to re-educate yourself every year.

Keep in mind, it was only a few years ago that assembly language, Pascal, Cobol, Fortran, JCL or VisualAge skills would have been considered desirable in an IT graduate. None of these are likely to be very useful in today's IT environment. Today its Ajax, Ruby on Rails, Python, XML and SOAP. By the time you finish your schooling though, all of these will be about as common and useful as a Betamax video recorder.

In other words, if you want a career in computers, be prepared to study for the rest of your working life.

I'll also warn you: there are sharks out there, as much as in any industry. Sub-contracting, cost-cutting and out-sourcing are common in IT and it can be pretty hard at times. Approach companies you might be interested in and ask about careers and mentoring, and take the time to study them carefully, and you'll probably do fine.

[SatCure]

It took till age 43, and several company moves and redundancies, for me to stop thinking "how can I get a career" and start thinking "how can I earn serious money?"

Answer: I now work for myself. I have a very amenable boss.

[Satcomer]

The real money is high end security right now. However in 4 years after one gets out of school, this may change.