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Career Launcher: Computers and Programming Copyright © 2010 by Infobase Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information contact: Ferguson An imprint of Infobase Publishing 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data McCoy, Lisa. Computers and programming / Lisa McCoy. p. cm. — (Career launcher) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8160-7950-6 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8160-7950-1 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN 978-1-4381-3113-9 (e-book) 1. Computer science—Vocational guidance. I. Title. QA76.25.M45 2010 004.023—dc22 2009021393 Ferguson books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk quantities for businesses, associations, institutions, or sales promotions. Please call our Special Sales Department in New York at (212) 967-8800 or (800) 322-8755. You can find Ferguson on the World Wide Web at http://www.fergpubco.com Produced by Print Matters, Inc. Text design by A Good Thing, Inc. Cover design by Takeshi Takahashi Cover printed by Art Print, Taylor, PA Book printed and bound by Maple Press, York, PA Date printed: June 2010 Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 This book is printed on acid-free paper. Contents Foreword / vii Acknowledgments / xiii Introduction / xv 1 Industry History / 1 2 State of the Industry / 26 3 On the Job / 54 4 Tips for Success / 83 5 Talk Like a Pro / 109 6 Resources / 125 Index / 141 v Foreword Congratulations! With Career Launcher: Computers and Programming in hand, you are in a great position to effectively manage your new career, which will reward you with more opportunities and enable you to increase your earning potential. Many of us, me included, took a haphazard approach to career management by choosing jobs for the paycheck rather than the work satisfaction or potential career growth. One of the most costly mistakes you can make is not taking a proactive and informed approach in managing your career. While education, experience, and technical skills may qualify you for a position, your ability to build a productive career path also falls under the scrutiny of potential employers. Cardiac Science’s (http://www.cardiacscience.com) technology focuses on cardiac stress testing equipment, rehabilitation, automated external defibrillators (AEDs), and data management systems. At the base of all the products are computers. Their competitors are Philips and Siemens, so they are up against the big boys and have to stay on the cutting edge or lose market share. They employed programmers, developers, technical project managers, and testers. In my nearly five years with the company, I hired well over 300 people, and 50 percent of my hires were computer professionals. We had more than 100 employees in three states in technology— both software and hardware. We always had open staffi ng requisitions for these folks, and they were always hard to fi nd—especially good people with at least four years of experience. That is the most in-demand experience level. After hiring hundreds of technical people throughout my career, I realized that the most successful candidates had similar philosophies about how they managed and approached their careers. These candidates understand that there are many doors open to them with their technical skills and they make smart choices in order to maximize their potential. Here are some of the commonalities I observed: The Only Way to Do Great Work Is to Love What You Do. Steve Jobs, the co-founder and CEO of Apple, wrote this in his 2005 commencement speech to Stanford University graduates. Love what vi