mainframe career advice

[Mirlitone]

hi there, sorry if it's not the appropriate goup...

I've just earned my Master degree of Computer Science, and i'm looking
for a job. i've carried out some internships in JAVA, C++ and a bit of
..NET.

Now it seems that i can't get a job in J2EE with my J2SE background, so
i've received a proposal in the mainframe area. This job comes with a
training program, since i'm completely new in this field.

Do you think mainframe is a good option to start my career with ? Don't
you think i might be trapped in by working with these dying
technologies?

BTW i'm in France, and the salary is 24.5 US$ after tax.

thanks in advance for your comments

 

[Mathias Waack]

Do you think mainframe is a good option to start my career with ?

Don't know if its the right job for you, don't know if its the right salary
for you, don't know if its a good start for you, don't know if there is
some relationsship to this group, but...

Don't
you think i might be trapped in by working with these dying
technologies?

....I'm fairly sure you will die sooner then this technology.

Mathias

 

[Mirlitone]

that's a very interesting point of view. Anyone else ?

 

[Rich S.]

What is the mainframe? Some are more popular than others. If you are
developing code then that will be experience (somewhat) regardless of the
platform you are on.

If you're doing c++ then it shouldn't matter whether its on a pc or a Tandem
mainframe, although I believe alot of employers would disagree.

 

[morning_path]

For very large companies here in the US, there is still a lot of
mainframe use. IBM is working on new products for mainframe hardware
all the time. z/OS has updates continually. So, it's still somewhat an
active area. So, if you'd become experienced in mainframe, then you
might have a good position in the mainframe world because not a lot of
new people are learning the old tech. (What I mean is that I don't see
a lot of people under 30 who know the mainframe.)

If the job you're offered is for programming on the mainframe, then
what is the language you'll be using? Because, for instance, we program
Java at my company using Websphere in a Unix shell on the mainframe, so
it's not bad.

But, if you're learning COBOL or Focus or something specifically for
the mainframe, then you'll have to decide whether or not you like
procedural vs. object-oriented. Also, you'll be limiting yourself on
what future jobs you can get with these older languages' knowledge.

 

[Mirlitone]

well apparently not: i've been interviewed for a firm that were looking
for "C++ under Unix". I came over with your visual C++ experience, and
this has been a problem for them.

I think it's dumb to react like this. Especialy when you're interviewed
for a junior developper job. But if unemployment is high, firms can do
whatever they want.

 

[Stephan Menzel]

that's a very interesting point of view. Anyone else ?

Same thing here (germany).
I know some (30-40 year old) guys working in that sector and
they are more and more important, wages rising (unlinke others) and they can
be quite sure about their jobs.
If you will indeed die sooner than this mainframe stuff I dare not question.
I think you will have very few jobs to choose from but out of those you
might have a pretty free choice. However, regardless of job security and
salary, you will be knee deep in the shit for this stuff really honestly
sucks and in 20 years you will have a hard time find somebody to talk to
about your sector since nobody knows anything about that anymore. They will
still use it though.

Stephan

 

[Mirlitone]

i don't have much details yet about the project. Guys are just asking
me if i'm ok with mainframes.

All i know is that it deals with maintaining a mainframe soft with a
language that is not OO.

 

[Mirlitone]

since you are in gemany an in the C.S. sector, i can tell you the name
of the firm, it starts with a UNI and ends with a LOG.

 

[osmium]

What is the mainframe? Some are more popular than others. If you are
developing code then that will be experience (somewhat) regardless of the
platform you are on.

If you're doing c++ then it shouldn't matter whether its on a pc or a
Tandem mainframe, although I believe alot of employers would disagree.

Let me see if I understand this. You believe that there are people who
actually earn a living knowing only a language and with no operating system
or ancillary knowledge? The only people who can do that that I am aware of
are instructors. Any other job I have ever held or even be aware of,
required a *huge* amount of additional background.