Making It in IT - Readers Buoy Ed's Outlook for 2012

IT pros response to Ed's offer of help and call out for career information encouraging.

Dear Readers:

I guess I should be gratified at the volume of responses I’ve gotten to my offers of help and information from Tom’s IT Pro readers–over 50 emails so far, and counting–but for some reason I’m reminded of Oscar Wilde’s famous epigram, “When the Gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers” (aka “Be careful what you wish for…”).

It’s been a busy last week as I’ve spent the better part of a long day reading and responding to a whole slew of emails over the holiday weekend. On the whole, however, I find myself encouraged by what I’m seeing, and in dealing with the questions and concerns of those who’ve seen fit to write to me so far.

There really haven’t been any serious hard-luck stories just yet (not that I want to encourage those). Though some writers do live in economically depressed areas like Michigan or New Orleans, they’re either willing to relocate or are resigned to living with the limited options that staying put presents them with. In large part, however, my correspondents either have a degree—or are working on finishing one soon—and most already have at least two or three entry level certifications (A+ comes in first, Network+ second, and CCNA third, with MCTS not far behind, as general demographics and credentials earned data would lead me to expect).

What’s really encouraging about this pool of people is that they all seem convinced that they can succeed simply by making good plans and then working hard to bring their plans to fruition. Life does have a way of interfering with one’s plans from time to time, but this is the kind of attitude and approach that I really like to see, and that also gives me hope for the future of our profession and the people who work in this field.

Although the economy is doing better than two to three years ago, we’re by no means into clover just yet. But I get a strong sense of optimism and enthusiasm about the future of life and work in IT from all of my correspondents so far. This has buoyed my own outlook on 2012, and helps me to believe that perhaps our turnaround might be ready to gain some speed and momentum instead of tottering along in fits and starts as it did for much of 2010 and 2011.

One of my correspondents raised the topic of good programming books with me. He reminded me that Steve McConnell’s classic 2004 book Code Complete: A Practical Handbook of Software Construction, 2e, (Microsoft Press, ISBN: 0735619670, $27.35 at Amazon) is both a gem and a classic, and highly recommended for anybody who wants to understand how to build usable software, above and beyond the details and minutiae of the programming languages used to implement such stuff.

I countered with some additional classics that any good programmer should read at least once, if not refer to regularly, as I added these titles in my reply: Erich Gamma, et al: Design Patterns; Gary Entsminger The Tao of Objects; and Gerald Weinberg, The Psychology of Computer Programming—all classics, all mind-shattering, all worth reading and re-reading.

If anybody else wants to add to this collection, this is one reading list it would be my pleasure to compile and maintain as a public service.

Do please keep your emails and online comments coming. It’s my continued pleasure to work with as many of you as might find my input and ruminations worthwhile. I often learn as much or more from what other people ask me as I do from my own investigations, so I’m happy for the opportunity to interact with the Tom’s IT Pro audience!

Ed Tittel is a 30-year-plus veteran of the computing industry, who’s worked as a programmer, a technical manager, a classroom instructor, a network consultant and a technical evangelist for companies that include Burroughs, Schlumberger, Novell, IBM/Tivoli and NetQoS. He has written and blogged for numerous publications, including Tom's Hardware, and is the author of over 140 computing books with a special emphasis on information security, Web markup languages and development tools, and Windows operating systems.

E-mail Ed at etittel@tomsitpro.com with your request for IT certification or career info, or your ideas for future blogs. If your e-mail leads him to a blog topic, he’ll have the Tom’s staff send you your very own Tom’s IT Pro t-shirt! Be the envy of your friends and colleagues, and help him help you with your IT career!