Agree with the poster. Much better IMHO and more enjoyable back then.
Because of the software distribution model then there was a real effort to produce a quality product. These days not so much. Users are more like beta testers now. Apps get deployed with a keyboard input. The constant UI changes for apps (Zoom comes to mind) are difficult for users to keep up with.
The complexity is way way higher today. It wasn't difficult to have a complete handle on the entire system back then.
Software developers where valued more highly. The machines lacked speed and resources - it took more skill/effort to get performance from them. Not so much of an issue today.
Still a good job but I would like seek something different if I was starting out today.
> Still a good job but I would like seek something different if I was starting out today
I'm only 6 years in, and I am starting to feel this.
I went into computer science because it's something I knew that, at some level, it was something I always wanted to do. I've always been fascinated with technology ever since I was a child -- how things work, why things work, etc..
While studying computer science at my average state school, I met a few others that were a lot like me. We'd always talk about this cool new technology, work on things together, etc.. The was a real passion for the craft in a sense. It's something I felt similar during my time studying music with my peers.
Perhaps, in some naive way, I thought the work world would be a lot like that too. And of course, this is only my experiences so far, but I have found my peers to be significantly different.
People I work with do not seem to care about technology, programing, etc.. They care about dollar signs, promotions, and getting things done as quickly as possible (faster != better quality). Sure, those three things are important to varying degrees, but it's not why I chose computer science, and I struggle to connect with those people. I've basically lost my passion for programing because of it (though that is not the entire reason -- burnout and whatnot has contributed significantly.)
I'm by no means a savant nor would I even consider myself that talented, but I used to have a passion for programming and that made all the "trips" and "falls" while learning worth it in the end.
I tell people I feel like I deeply studied many of the ins and outs photography only to take school pictures all day.
Don't get me wrong there are still incredible opportunities out there. IoT is starting to pick up steam. Individuals that really like knowing what the metal is doing have many green fields to settle. You can get prototype boards designed and delivered for prices that an individual can afford. That was not possible 30 years ago. If you can find areas that cross disciplines things get more interesting.
WebStuff is dead IMHO. It is primarily advertising and eyeballs - yawn. If I see one more JS framework I'll puke. We have so many different programming languages it is difficult to get a team to agree on which one to use:) Don't get me started on databases. I have apps that use 3 or 4 just because the engineers like learning new things. It is a mess.
Because of the software distribution model then there was a real effort to produce a quality product. These days not so much. Users are more like beta testers now. Apps get deployed with a keyboard input. The constant UI changes for apps (Zoom comes to mind) are difficult for users to keep up with.
The complexity is way way higher today. It wasn't difficult to have a complete handle on the entire system back then.
Software developers where valued more highly. The machines lacked speed and resources - it took more skill/effort to get performance from them. Not so much of an issue today.
Still a good job but I would like seek something different if I was starting out today.