DWUTKA at marlow.com
DWUTKA at marlow.com
Mon Mar 29 17:18:28 CST 2004
I have to admit I have the same sentiments. I'm more concerned with what I need to solve, then what tools I use. That is the only reason that I haven't bothered to do anything with .Net, because I have yet to require new tools to do the jobs I get. It's also why I love to listen to technologies in other areas, because it broadens my perspective on how to approach a problem. Drew -----Original Message----- From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com]On Behalf Of William Hindman Sent: Monday, March 29, 2004 5:09 PM To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving Subject: Re: [AccessD] OT: A survey from somebody not as well-connected as JC ...don't take this the wrong way Steve but some of the questions you ask point away from the answers you want imnsho ...Access is a tool for me ...I don't get clients ...or keep them ...because I use Access ...or any other tool ...I get and keep clients because I solve their problems ...99% could care less what I use as long as it works and fits their budget. ...of course I'm not trying to get rich like Rocky nor invent a new wheel like JC ...I do what it takes to make a client happy ...that, or I colbyize them ...I got into the SBS gig because a client was getting a raw deal from a Netware house and I agreed to fix his network if he'd invest the money in what I recommended ...he agreed and I bought a couple books on SBS and found a good list and he's happy and passed me on to a couple others and so on ...same with websites which I've now taken up for profit ...client was getting a raw deal and asked my advice ...so I bought a couple of books and found a good list and its starting to look pretty nice and he wants loads more and there is another waiting with baited breath ...if I want the work :) ...but I'm just me and don't have any intention of ever working hard again ...so much of this may not apply to you ...but I'd think that if you focused a lot more on what the client needs rather than what gadget you're fixing to use, you might solve both of your problems :) ...just my two cents of course ...others may well see it different and I won't mind at all :) William Hindman ipsedixitism: something is true because I myself have said it is true ...the philosophy of Noam Chomsky :) ----- Original Message ----- From: "Steven W. Erbach" <serbach at new.rr.com> To: "Access Developers discussion and problem solving" <accessd at databaseadvisors.com> Sent: Monday, March 29, 2004 11:16 AM Subject: [AccessD] OT: A survey from somebody not as well-connected as JC > Dear Group, > > This is for the independent developers only. If you work for a company and you'd like to take the survey, just let me know that you're not an independent developer when you reply. > > I'm curious about what you independent developers have had to learn to keep up with the changing marketplace. > > 1) If you've managed to maintain a significant clientele by developing Access applications, what have you done to sharpen your skills to make you more attractive as the developer of choice in a competitive field? That is, have you developed a framework like JC, or have you gone more towards developing front ends for SQL back ends like Arthur? > > 2) If you've moved away from Access development as your primary source of income, what other platforms have you learned to make a living? Do you now do mostly .NET development, ASP, SQL Server, PHP, what? > > 3) If you're doing .NET development, what kind of things are you doing? Has it lived up to the hype? Last year about this time I was searching the want ads for positions before I decided to stick with my own business. I was amused by the ads that profiled the "ideal" candidate as one who had deep .NET experience. The stinking product had only officially been on the market for one whole year with another year in beta before that. Sheesh! Have you seen any real live .NET implementations that are worth bragging about...or have you created any? > > In short, what have you had to do to make yourself useful as an independent developer? I know that William works quite a bit with SBS and LANs. Have any of you developed proficiency with cabling and routers and such to increase your marketability? > > Do you do any security consulting, say? Do you build custom-order PCs? Do you do LAN management, e-mail server management and setup, web site development? > > One final thing: Years ago when I started I took advantage of the swing of the pendulum that put PC power in users' hands. That is, the PC was a great analysis tool for mainframe data. Lotus 1-2-3, dBASE III, Paradox, etc., were the tools that enabled users and departments to fiddle with the data without having to wait for the IT department to get around to their little pissant application requests. > > Now the pendulum has swung the other way. Security concerns and scalability and distributed networks / VPNs and web-based database applications have all made the pendulum swing back towards centralized control...and the IT guys are loving it. Or am I reading it wrong? What do you think? > > Regards, > > Steve Erbach > Scientific Marketing > Neenah, WI > 920-969-0504 > > Security and Virus information: > http://www.swerbach.com/security > > -- > _______________________________________________ > AccessD mailing list > AccessD at databaseadvisors.com > http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd > Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com > -- _______________________________________________ AccessD mailing list AccessD at databaseadvisors.com http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com