Re: A question for my personal knowledge.

[Marin David Condic <condicma@bogon.pwfl.com>]

Charlie McCutcheon wrote:
> 
> I think "interesting we don't do that here" generally translates to "we're not
> interested in training you - NEXT".  If you don't have the specific language
> skills they want, you're not considered for the job.  That's a negative if you
> wanted the job.  So if Ada is not wanted with employers, Ada programmers worry
> about being employable.
> 
I think you missed the original issue. It isn't a case of telling the
prospective employer "I know language X and have been programming in
nothing else but language X for the last 40 years and I don't know any
other languages." It was originally posited that knowing language X
would be viewed as a negative.

For example, I'm interviewing for an embedded programming position where
the languages involved are SNOBOL and Lisp. I tell the interviewer, "Why
yes, I know and have used in practical projects SNOBOL and Lisp. As a
matter of fact I was on the design team that invented both of these
languages. I've been called into court to testify as an expert witness
on the precise interpretations of both SNOBOL and Lisp. Why, I could
roughly estimate the amount of absolutely flawless lines of SNOBOL and
Lisp I've written as easily going into the billions. Oh, and I also have
used Ada in case you ever want to use that in an embedded system."

The employer turns and says "Hmmmmm... Ada, eh? I'm terribly sorry, but
we don't allow Ada speakers to work here. We feel that anyone who
bothers to learn Ada must be a member of a criminal subclass, a
dangerous Bolshevek revolutionary, a rebellious malcontent and a freak
of nature who could *never* fit into civilized society. Now I'll thank
you sir to leave before I call security!"

Somehow I can't find that scenario to be realistic. Somehow, I have some
faith in people who hire software engineers to have some knowledge of
what it is they are supervising and that they wouldn't hold knowledge of
a given language against someone, provided they were well qualified for
the task at hand. They might foolishly overlook an otherwise qualified
Software Engineer for lack of experience with their language of the day
- a dumb move, if you ask most of us - but I couldn't see people being
so stupid or bigoted that they would actually hold knowledge of a
specific language against someone.

MDC
-- 
Marin David Condic
Real Time & Embedded Systems, Propulsion Systems Analysis
United Technologies, Pratt & Whitney, Large Military Engines
M/S 731-95, P.O.B. 109600, West Palm Beach, FL, 33410-9600
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