What other languages has she used (either at work or in school)?
Does she want to go back to work in a particular field?
COBOL Language
- Thread starter CloneFanInKC
- Start date
Does she want to go back to work in a particular field?
I had to get my response in early because I figured by page two it would turn to a D&D or LARP debate and I have no clue on that stuff.
Ah... fond memories of spring 1984
COBOL + Basement Comp Sci Bldg + Punch Card Machines
No wonder I drank so much that semester.
COBOL + Basement Comp Sci Bldg + Punch Card Machines
No wonder I drank so much that semester.
I would love/appreciate to hear your thoughts on the topic/suggestions.
We are not that far along yet, merely exploring if COBAL was an option. She knows C++ and Visual and I remember her being bored/frustrated with COBOL before she left the workforce.
Our kids are close to all being in school and we are looking at her filling some anticipated free time, but not available for a typical 40 hr/wk corporate career.
Thank you, Cyclone Nation!
I'll give her a name drop to my wife and see if she recalls her, simply for my entertainment. Her degree is in MIS as well.
My understanding is there is demand for it, simply because of the lack of knowledge in todays world.
All the old systems that still run on it have less and less people with the knowledge to work with it, so those that do are getting more and more demanded. And there still are a lot of systems still using it, especially in the financial and insurance world.
I talked to a professor a year or so ago and said one of his colleagues does freelance work with Cobol, and is as busy as he wants, and makes great money because there are so few people with the ability to work with it, so not only is he in constant demand, he also can charge a premium for his time.
All the old systems that still run on it have less and less people with the knowledge to work with it, so those that do are getting more and more demanded. And there still are a lot of systems still using it, especially in the financial and insurance world.
I talked to a professor a year or so ago and said one of his colleagues does freelance work with Cobol, and is as busy as he wants, and makes great money because there are so few people with the ability to work with it, so not only is he in constant demand, he also can charge a premium for his time.
Guessing she maybe went close to the same time as I did (98-02?) If so she probably had a class with at least 1 of the Tomlinsons. They were a husband and wife duo that taught a lot of the entry level programming classes at ISU during that time. Both had titles of Adjunct Instructor and neither were very good instructors at that. Had Mr T for 2 different classes and Mrs T for COBOL. Mr T taught my 1st C++ class and we had 1 exam where the class average was below 50%. He didn't grade on a curve so do the math and probably 3/4 of the class failed that exam and very few probably got an A or B. He tried to shame us then went question by question through the exam and some of the top students in the class poked holes in a lot of them either the answer was misleading or we had not even covered the content yet and asked him to provide proof if he claimed he had which he struggled to do. Funny thing is the next few weeks we got some "extra credit" opportunities that we figured was meant to boost grades after that horrible exam. Have several stories on how bad Mrs T was including her forgetting to post a programming assignment on her website then after realizing she had not still thought we could get it done in 2 days which not surprisingly got extended eventually.
It’s still around and nobody teaches it anymore. Can maintain legacy systems or do migrations, which if she knows COBOL and Java, for example, would be useful.
Tell your wife, good news that since she’s old, her knowledge of archaic things will help her. I’m sure that will put a smile
On her face.
Can you all stop speaking in code so I can understand all this?
Easy to learn new languages cheap online now. Coursera and the like are great and offer certs.
They were not skinny people if I remember right. I hated COBOL, but TBF I didn't do very well in any programming language. But funny thing I've done well with my MIS degree. Thanks to being president of the Club in 1996 or 97.
Did a Google search and it appears that Mr T passed away in 2019. Found what he and the Mrs. did after their time at ISU to be interesting. I liked him as a person, he made lectures interesting but wasn't always the best teaching the subject content. I do remember him talking about his military background and reading his obituary I'm impressed with the service and person he was.
www.nicholsfuneralandcremation.com
Ralph Tomlinson - View Obituary & Service Information
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www.nicholsfuneralandcremation.com
Programming was not my thing. Fortunately I have made a 22 year IT career without having to take a job programming. I do dabble with some VBS and .bat file scripting but that is nothing as complicated as actual coding. I do mostly hardware/software support and deployments for end user computing so kind feel like a jack of all trades at times with how much crossover my role has with other groups in our company.
I graduated in '99 and had them both.Did a Google search and it appears that Mr T passed away in 2019. Found what he and the Mrs. did after their time at ISU to be interesting. I liked him as a person, he made lectures interesting but wasn't always the best teaching the subject content. I do remember him talking about his military background and reading his obituary I'm impressed with the service and person he was.
Ralph Tomlinson - View Obituary & Service Information
Share Memories and Support the Family.
I believe the company I work for still has some mainframe stuff using COBOL. I'll do some digging tomorrow
This thread is bringing back memories. I did my MIS coursework in 96-97. I remember Ms. Tomlinson. I didn’t mind her or COBOL. I did some MicroFocus COBOL and then moved into Powerbuilder and then the .Net world. My 2 cents is if you understand the fundamentals of software development, you can pick up most languages.
Regarding current COBOL, Principal Financial in Des Moines still has COBOL.
Regarding current COBOL, Principal Financial in Des Moines still has COBOL.
I'd have her look at large financial/insurance companies that have been around awhile.
@cyphoon might also have some thoughts
@cyphoon might also have some thoughts
I brought this topic up over dinner and she remembered both of them immediately. Mr taught her C++ class and Mrs was her introduction to COBOL.
I enjoying sharing notes from this thread with her and then her responses, thank you CF!!
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I just shared this with her, she liked him. Didn’t care for her due to her style…Did a Google search and it appears that Mr T passed away in 2019. Found what he and the Mrs. did after their time at ISU to be interesting. I liked him as a person, he made lectures interesting but wasn't always the best teaching the subject content. I do remember him talking about his military background and reading his obituary I'm impressed with the service and person he was.
Ralph Tomlinson - View Obituary & Service Information
Share Memories and Support the Family.
