Al,
"Software development is inherently an exercise in climbing steep
learning curves - an exercise in problem solving - and the learning
curves don't disappear" -- Steve McConnell
I find that Steve's quote equally applies to professional development;
growing as an application developer is a continuous exercise in climbing
steep learning curves that don't disappear.
So you "want to stay in application development and support...
reasonably employed". Here's my two cents:
Learn to program in C. If you want to stay in the construction side of
development, the aptitude to understand C is what separates the men from
the boys. Notice that it's an "aptitude"; some people just don't have
the brain cells that understand memory allocation, let alone pointers
and recursion. Not everyone who calls themselves a "programmer" has
this aptitude. Many "productive" Pick programmers fail to develop
skills outside of Pick because the other languages don't make sense to them.
If you can make sense of C, then a whole other world of programming
languages opens up. Java, JavaScript, PHP, Perl, VC++, C# and all of
the other so-called "curly brace" languages. I recommend getting the
book "Teach Yourself C in 21 Days" from your library or bookstore.
Remember: the reason for learning C is to provide a stable stepping
stone to other similar languages. In this day and age, I'd recommend C#
as your next language: Eric Sink referred to it as "Java done right."
Also on the construction side of development, get Mike Gunderloy's
"Coder to Developer" to familiarize yourself with the different software
tools available. Most Pick shops don't do daily builds and regression
tests, and you'll want to see "how the other half lives."
If you don't know them already, you must learn XHTML, CSS, and
JavaScript. Almost every modern product has some kind of web display or
interaction, so there's no excuse to be ignorant of them.
I see the biggest strike against Pick in general is it's perceived lack
connectivity to other applications. It's not true, but it seems that
way. Why? Because most Pickies are ignorant of how the big SQL apps
work, plus unfamiliarity with UniObjects, BCI, and other connection
techniques creates doubt -- a doubt that there's a simply easy way to
move data back and forth between apps. So Mr. SQL says, "convert that
Pick database to SQL" because it removes that doubt. To counter this
perception, we need to be masters of connectivity. Become *fluent* in
the technologies to connect U2 with the outside world.
Construction and maintenance are maybe the most visible aspect of
application development, but probably not the most important. Analysis
and design are. To grow in these areas requires study, whether that's
taking courses or reading books. Read all the Steve McConnell books
you can find. Learn how to create function specs and system
architecture designs. Learn about "design patterns". Find out what
"MVC" is.
Learn accounting and business processes. "The Accounting Game" is a
good book for newbies to get a grasp on both bookkeeping and general
accounting concepts. Most other books focus exclusively on the
concepts, which are easy enough to understand. The hard part of
accounting is learning the specific accounts to debit/credit for a
specific transaction; most of the time this is learned on the job. "The
Accounting Game" does a better-than-average job teaching the
transaction/account relationship.
Last, consider getting a CS degree if you don't have one. I hesitate to
recommend this, but I know most job postings list it as a requirement.
I think it will pay off in the long run.
I realize that this is a long list of stuff to learn. And the steep
learning curves won't disappear. You need to ask yourself if this is
the path you really, really want to take.
rex
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