[tpm] Perl as a career

[arocker at vex.net]

>> - Perl has always been a "Cinderella", and will continue
>>   being so, with no "Princess" come along to rescue in the future.
>
> That's a pretty non-traditional reading of the story -- in the one I
> grew up with, it was the "Prince" who came rising to the rescue.
>

Diversity, dear boy, diversity. (She's probably riding a Harley, but
definitely not carrying a sword; Health & Safety regs, you know, and
self-defense is politically incorrect?)

>> What do you think the percentage would be (web maintaining to all Perl
>> jobs)?
>
Probably 80%/20%, as in most other fields. This ratio is often bemoaned as
though it's a bad thing, but it's inevitable. If "maintenance" is defined
as updating and adapting to new circumstances, rather than fixing
developers' mistakes, a well-written system will inevitably tend to higher
ratios of maintenance to original effort as its functions are extended.
(If the design was really prescient, much of that maintenance will be
users updating control files, rather than new coding.)

> Times, open source projects are probably easier to rationalize than
> something that needs a shiny and expensive certificate.

Unfortunately, (damn you, Novell!), shiny certificates have become what
the suits and the firing department look for. (They're easier to
understand than actual results.)