Essential skills for getting a job in programming

Question

I am working in digital media operations. I want to move to programming. I have checked jobs and one thing i realise is just by mastering java i wont get a job. I need skills in 3 areas for getting a decent job.
Language such as java
Scripting such as HTML, XML etc
and SQL or some server
now what are the essential skills to get a junior to mid level job in programming?

Answer 1

search4survival wrote:
it would be a lot better than salesSo that's what "digital media operations" is. I did wonder. :-)
I would definitely read Kevin's article, because it's right on the money. Depending on how far along you are in your career, the 10,000 hours it talks about may be difficult to manage, but you may be able to get some of the way there. You might also want to ask yourself a few questions:
1. Do you like the idea of programming, or do you just think it might get you out of your current rut?
2. Are you willing to put in the graft? A lot of programming is repetitive and boring and, like most jobs, as a junior you'll probably get a lot of the Joe-jobs.
3. Are you willing to put in time outside your 40-hour week - reading and doing? Because that's likely to be where you do a lot of your learning. It may take a while for the effects to be noticed by your colleagues/managers as well.
I'm also a great believer in understanding principles, and that can involve some dry reading. So, once you've mastered the basics, look for good background material (it may also help you follow your colleagues when they're talking techno-babble):
Language such as java - not a bad place to start, but find some material on Object Orientation (the why, not the how) once you've got past "Hello World".
Scripting - a couple you might want to look at are perl and bash.
SQL or some [database] - absolutely, but try and find a book on data management theory too. It's surprising how few programmers know much about it these days.
Hope I haven't put you off too much, and best of luck.
Winston