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Mostly curious of how easy you found it?
I did not find it easy. But I also think if it had been easy I wouldn't still be doing it. I think the most difficult part of my transition was being a solo dev and learning patterns and libraries like EF Core on my own https://twitter.com/HalbaradKenafin/status/1303686028037943296
I did not find it easy. But I also think if it had been easy I wouldn't still be doing it. I think the most difficult part of my transition was being a solo dev and learning patterns and libraries like EF Core on my own https://twitter.com/HalbaradKenafin/status/1303686028037943296
My first 3 months consisted of many 80 hour weeks resulting in a mountain of code that would make me physically ill if I were to look back at it now. I was lucky enough to find an understanding employer who believed in me
Alas, I am fairly anal about figuring out the right way to do things, and not settling on the first draft that "works". This has been both a boon and a curse in my career lol. More the former than the latter, though.
Even recalling the difficulty now, I must say that it is a decision I do not regret in any capacity whatsoever. I love the software world.. as long as I can keep JS at arms length. We don't get along so well. :)
Did you struggle to find roles willing to take you on?
I did, but not likely for reasons that would matter to you. PowerShell expertise was (and probably still is) a hot commodity. I had many interviews with reputable companies. The opportunities were there, but..
I did, but not likely for reasons that would matter to you. PowerShell expertise was (and probably still is) a hot commodity. I had many interviews with reputable companies. The opportunities were there, but..
I was unable to relocate, as every one of them required at the time. This is probably less of an issue right now. Though I will be honest -- I do not know the current temp of the market for dev positions in England
Did you have much non-PS experience before it?
Some. I like to joke that it took me 10 years to run around in a very large circle. Or quite small, depending on your perspective. I went to school for Computer Science (C++), but ended up at a Cisco VAR
Some. I like to joke that it took me 10 years to run around in a very large circle. Or quite small, depending on your perspective. I went to school for Computer Science (C++), but ended up at a Cisco VAR
installing/configuring Cisco UCS, VMware, Windows, and Linux. Over the course of the next 9 years I went from engineer, to architect, to automator, and all the way back around to dev.
I had the discipline and the determination to convert my PS experience to C#, but I definitely did not have the experience necessary to do that job well day 1. Again, lucky to have the employer I do.
Why did you make the change?
The last few years of my former career I spent neck deep in PowerShell "the right way". Doing full CICD with Pester and Jenkins, managing code with an on-prem VS Team Services instance. It was glorious.
The last few years of my former career I spent neck deep in PowerShell "the right way". Doing full CICD with Pester and Jenkins, managing code with an on-prem VS Team Services instance. It was glorious.
Two things happened. 1: I had a manager tell me that I was a one-off and that I would be used while I was there, but they had no intention of investing in people learning and doing PowerShell or code of any kind
I felt a bit like someone had sucker punched me. I wasn't sure what to do with that -- but many years later I am very thankful for the honesty. Days after that I remember waking up, logging on, and immediately opening VS Code.
I looked over the edge of a steaming hot cup of coffee at the PowerShell project I was working on and I thought, "Well, damn. This is what I should be doing. And if I can't do it here.. I guess that means I'm doing it somewhere else"
And so that was it. I put out my resume -- made some calls -- and eventually ended up right where I am today.
