Computer Job Survival Guide (Paperback)

by Janet Ruhl (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"...very specific about how to find your first computer job, even when you lack a four-year degree" -- Joyce Lain Kennedy, July 30, 2000

"I wish I had owned this book when I began my own software development career." -- Warren Keuffel in Software Development, Oct 2000

Product Description
Learn from seasoned professionals the secrets of how to break into the computer field and craft a long-term, high-earning computer career that keeps on growing no matter what changes occur in computer technology.

This book will teach you:

How to find the very best first computer job
How to land a computer job when you have strong skills but weak credentials
What today's salaried professionals are earning--and for what
How to avoid being trapped in dead end jobs
How to decide if it is time to change jobs
How to work safely with today's job placement firms
If you should go into management or stay technical
How to evaluate start-ups, stock options, and pre-IPO companies
What's involved in working for consulting firms
How to negotiate the best salary and benefit packages

Product Details

• Paperback: 211 pages
• Publisher: Technion Books (October 2, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0964711648
• ISBN-13: 978-0964711648
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,079,974 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Writes stuff about computer jobs that nobody else does, January 29, 2001

By	Mark Wong (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews

The main thing that is different about this book is it talks about things about computer jobs that you normally don't see in print that often.

One main idea is your long term computer job longevity can greatly be impacted on what you do in your first computer job. If you are 1 of 100 people programming and you only get to see a small part of a project, your skills don't increase that much. If you are 1 of 100 people but split in 10 projects and you work on a project from start to finish, you will learn a lot of new skills in a short period of time that are useful to other companies.

You need to constantly increase your skills that are in demand outside of your company because you may be in trouble if you are fired or laid off.

Another idea in the same vein is start off as a maintenance programmer instead of as a developer. You may learn more of the system and also add many new skills compared to a developer that only sees a small part of a project.

The main thrust of this book plus her other books is you need to take control of your career. I worked 15 years at 1 company without much of a career plan and I had a hard time finding a job when I got laid off. If I had these books 5 years or 10 years or even 15 years into my career, I would have known what to do to stay in a technical career. The 5 years that I have been contract programming along with Janet's books, I now realize how I want to continue the rest of my career. Janet's books explains why and how I will achieve these goals.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Now I don't have to answer these questions, January 15, 2001

By	"cploeg" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

I enjoy mentoring people who are interested in moving into the high tech world but don't know where to start. I used to spend hours explaining how the IT world is divided up, what different technology choices there are and how they relate to jobs and training alternatives. Now I suggest people exploring information technology careers read Janet Ruhl's book; she's much better than I at explaining how everything works. I like this book so much, I've bought it as a gift for three prospective computer professionals.

But the Computer Job Survival Guide is equally good for those of us who are already computing professionals but want to continue to move on and up. Janet reviews some common-sense job skills, such as salary negotiation, but also hits on new hot topics, like stock options, working for start-ups, and when, how and whether or not to move from technical work into management.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner from Janet Ruhl, January 14, 2001

By	"michigandinosaur" (Deetroit! MI USA) - See all my reviews

Full disclosure: I am a regular vistor at Janet Ruhl'son-line forum...I've read her other books as well.

Janet askedfor title suggestions a while writing the book, and now seeing thebook, I think "The Complete Guide to Managing Your ComputerCareer" would be quite descriptive. There are sections, evenwhole chapters on tailoring your resume, interviewing, evaluating theopportunity, and salary negotiation.

Chapter 5 "ContractConsulting" is a distillation of the advice and horror tales wehave seen on Janet'son-line forum. This alone makes it worthwhilefor the non-beginner, non-employee like myself.

Appendix A lists 25questions to ask at an interview with a client or recruiter. It isquite similar to the one I developed for my own use last year.

Ifyou haven't already, buy this book. Especially if you're a newbie, aneftie thinking about taking the consulting plunge, or even a grizzledveteran - you will learn something useful, and it will cost you aboutan hour's pay or less.