Sort of part of the discussion...

I have been following this thread for the past week or so and agree with a 
lot of what has been said.  I kind of fell into RPG programming by 
accident about 10 years ago moving up from an operations position while I 
was going to school.  So professionally, it is the only language I have 
programmed in unless you count some embedded SQL here and there.  While in 
school I of course learned Pascal (what's that?? lol), C++, Java, COBOL, 
SQL and some HTML, etc.  When I was having a difficult time finding an RPG 
position, I would look for entry level positions  in just about any 
language, willing to work my way up just to be able to become more 
experienced in some of the newer languages.  What always amazes me is that 
even with so-called entry level positions, they still wanted 1 - 3 years 
of experience...how is that entry level?  I think my resume is decent, I 
get a lot of calls when an RPG position is available, but could not even 
get a foot in the door (ie an interview) as entry level in another 
language.  I am in my mid-30s so really have to consider how to extend the 
life of my career in IT.  I enjoy it.  Most days I don't mind getting up 
to go to work in the morning.  But to be honest, I do not know what I will 
be doing 5 years from now.


Elonna Thompson