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From: cplxphil on 22 Dec 2009 16:28

To anyone generous enough to offer some advice,

I am currently (back) in the job market, and trying to find a
programming project to work on while I search for jobs that will
improve my skills and increase how "in-demand" I am in the industry.

I don't know what sort of project to undertake, however. My C++
skills are good, or at least good enough to get by for now; what I am
missing is an understanding of what sorts of advanced CS knowledge is
"in-demand" in the industry. I want to learn new things, but I am
afraid that I will delve into some new subject and waste a lot of time
by learning something that no one cares about.

Could anyone with knowledge of what sort of project I should undertake
give me any advice on this? I would be very grateful. I like genetic
algorithms and computability/complexity theory, but I'm not sure how
much anyone cares about these things. Alternatively, if anyone knows
of a general "knowledge area" (couldn't think of a better term there)
that I should focus on to improve, that would most useful also. I'm
primarily interested in theoretical stuff; I'd like to stay as true to
that interest as feasibly possible. One other way of describing my
interest might be: I like subjects where there's a certain "reward,"
if you will, for mathematical aptitude.

Some things I've thought about learning more about include:
artificial intelligence techniques (e.g., boosting algorithms), Markov
chains, general operations research, and a few other things I can't
remember right now

To any person who is kind enough to answer my question, I'd like to
ask a second question: For whatever project or knowledge area you
specify, could you also specify a geographic location in the US where
the skills associated with what you are talking about are relatively
highly in demand?

I am currently located in the Washington, DC area and having my life
gradually ruined by a going-on-nine-month security clearance ordeal.
(For those who don't know, nearly all worthwhile CS jobs in the area
require a clearance.) If my clearance goes through eventually, I
won't have to worry; but holding my breath is no longer an option.

Anyway, if anyone can offer any advice at all, I'd really appreciate
it! Thanks!

-Phil
From: Barb Knox on 22 Dec 2009 20:11
In article
<c135f3ba-716c-4bb2-bd88-37c42e514dd7(a)j4g2000yqe.googlegroups.com>,
cplxphil <cplxphil(a)gmail.com> wrote:

> To anyone generous enough to offer some advice,
>
> I am currently (back) in the job market, and trying to find a
> programming project to work on while I search for jobs that will
> improve my skills and increase how "in-demand" I am in the industry.
>
> I don't know what sort of project to undertake, however. My C++
> skills are good, or at least good enough to get by for now; what I am
> missing is an understanding of what sorts of advanced CS knowledge is
> "in-demand" in the industry. I want to learn new things, but I am
> afraid that I will delve into some new subject and waste a lot of time
> by learning something that no one cares about.
>
> Could anyone with knowledge of what sort of project I should undertake
> give me any advice on this? I would be very grateful. I like genetic
> algorithms and computability/complexity theory, but I'm not sure how
> much anyone cares about these things. Alternatively, if anyone knows
> of a general "knowledge area" (couldn't think of a better term there)
> that I should focus on to improve, that would most useful also. I'm
> primarily interested in theoretical stuff; I'd like to stay as true to
> that interest as feasibly possible. One other way of describing my
> interest might be: I like subjects where there's a certain "reward,"
> if you will, for mathematical aptitude.
>
> Some things I've thought about learning more about include:
> artificial intelligence techniques (e.g., boosting algorithms), Markov
> chains, general operations research, and a few other things I can't
> remember right now

You might consider checking with the local universities' CS and C Eng
departments to see if they have any need for a "Research Assistant" to
help with programming some professor's current project. I had a gig
like that once and it was quite interesting (but not well paid).

Good luck in your search.


> To any person who is kind enough to answer my question, I'd like to
> ask a second question: For whatever project or knowledge area you
> specify, could you also specify a geographic location in the US where
> the skills associated with what you are talking about are relatively
> highly in demand?
>
> I am currently located in the Washington, DC area and having my life
> gradually ruined by a going-on-nine-month security clearance ordeal.
> (For those who don't know, nearly all worthwhile CS jobs in the area
> require a clearance.) If my clearance goes through eventually, I
> won't have to worry; but holding my breath is no longer an option.
>
> Anyway, if anyone can offer any advice at all, I'd really appreciate
> it! Thanks!
>
> -Phil



--
---------------------------
| BBB b \ Barbara at LivingHistory stop co stop uk
| B B aa rrr b |
| BBB a a r bbb | Quidquid latine dictum sit,
| B B a a r b b | altum videtur.
| BBB aa a r bbb |
-----------------------------
From: Paul N on 23 Dec 2009 06:43
On 22 Dec, 21:28, cplxphil <cplxp...(a)gmail.com> wrote:
> I am currently (back) in the job market, and trying to find a
> programming project to work on while I search for jobs that will
> improve my skills and increase how "in-demand" I am in the industry.

You could try picking a few firms that you would want to work for, and
asking them. They may well not be hiring at the moment, but this could
work to your advatage as they may well be more open to discuss what
they will be looking for once they are hiring again. If you ask
several firms, this should give you some idea of what skills would be
useful, and may give you some idea of where to get them. (If nothing
else, you could ask "where have most of your employees got these
skills from?")
From: Thad Smith on 24 Dec 2009 15:10
cplxphil wrote:
> To anyone generous enough to offer some advice,
>
> I am currently (back) in the job market, and trying to find a
> programming project to work on while I search for jobs that will
> improve my skills and increase how "in-demand" I am in the industry.
>
> I don't know what sort of project to undertake, however. My C++
> skills are good, or at least good enough to get by for now; what I am
> missing is an understanding of what sorts of advanced CS knowledge is
> "in-demand" in the industry. I want to learn new things, but I am
> afraid that I will delve into some new subject and waste a lot of time
> by learning something that no one cares about.
>
> Could anyone with knowledge of what sort of project I should undertake
> give me any advice on this? I would be very grateful. I like genetic
> algorithms and computability/complexity theory, but I'm not sure how
> much anyone cares about these things.

The high-level skills that you mention, in my view, are rarely called
on. Typical developers do most of the work at a fairly simple level.
The skills that are important to me are

1) understanding the real-world application and uses well
2) designing good machine or human interfaces.
3) using tools and skills to manage the complexity of large projects
4) designing/writing code that can be easily maintained and extended
5) providing good documentation
6) designing/writing code that is robust

These should apply across many disciplines.

--
Thad
From: cplxphil on 26 Dec 2009 12:59

Thank you everyone for the advice, I really appreciate it.

-Phil
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