Time to retire?
I"m a software developer in Dayton, Ohio (USA) with over 20+ years of experience. The problem is, most of that experience is in Perl, and almost no one is still writing code in Perl. I have some Java experience (1 1/2 years), but all the Java developer jobs I've come across require at least 3 years of experience in the language. I've never worked with C# or .NET, so I'm not qualified for those jobs. Also, I can't relocate due to family commitments. I'm ready to throw in the towel and give up. But I can't see myself doing anything other than IT. Any suggestions?
This is very true statement.
Yes,if you are a veteran you can get the latest education with C++ or .Net at Learnkey Inc. They are a veterans college. I am know studying programming and I've just passed Python 3. That's what they are coding with today. It should be no problem for you.
Tim, You are too valuable to give up. If you have 20 years of coding, you can damn sure well learn C+ or .Net and java. Take an online course. You are not ready to throw in the towel and give up.
Time to hit the books. With 20 years experience coding, you should be able to transition to another language like Java easily. Better yet, Python. There are tons of Python jobs out there. To get experience, volunteer, teach, whatever. The main thing is when you get the interview, you’ll be tested If you study, you’ll pass the test.
You may think about what industries you have written for. I keep hearing that there are millions of examples of code on the internet, but if you do not understand the industry you are developing for what good are you. Industry knowledge is very important. Just something to thing about.
GOOD LUCK
You might be qualified for a junior position in java programming, and then work up from there. If you have a lot of experience, they might bump you up fairly quickly once you prove your proficiency. Also, those 5, 3, 2 years experience are just arbitrary measurements. There are plenty of places that are willing to take a chance on someone if they have a good track record and a lot of experience in the field. Don't be scared away from those positions. Still apply and see what happens.
Perl is one of the most beautiful, elegant languages ever. It is concise, flexible, efficient, and forgiving. That it doesn't have the cachet of other languages is a real pity. I love it!
If you are 20+ year Perl programmer, that means you understand programming, structure, and software architecture. My guess is that you could take a reasonable well-written program in PHP and make sense out of it in short order. Install WordPress, which is written in PHP, somewhere and spend time ripping it apart. It will start to make sense to you fairly quickly. The grammar and syntax is simpler than Perl. Once you are comfortable with that, then it becomes a matter of getting familiar with the libraries, which is no different in essence from learning new libraries in Perl. Within two weeks you will be conversant, within 6 months, an expert, and within 9 months you will be teaching PHP classes.
From PHP is is not a far leap to Javascript (though the language is a mess for many reasons).
If you ever worked in any flavor of BASIC, then Ruby and Python should be reasonably straightforward too.
Also, with 20 year of experience, I'm sure you know a LOT more than Perl. I'm sure you know ..IX operating systems backwards and forwards as well as databases, web services, and communication protocols. You can envision and describe end-to-end solutions -- you are not "just" a programmer, you are a software and solutions architect.
Don't give up hope! You have the knowledge, you have the mindset, you just need to acquire a few new skills that you should easily pick up.