does anybody earn a living programming in python?

[Paul Boddie]

George Sakkis wrote:
>

[Oslo, Norway short of 300-500 Java developers]

> Um, how many of these "lots of Java developers looking for work" live
> in, or are willing to relocate to, Oslo?

Well, I really meant to say that the "lots of Java developers" I've
seen actually are in Oslo. Certainly, every time this topic comes up in
some article, people tend to complain about a mismatch between employer
claims and their own experiences trying to get hired, and there
wouldn't be much of a debate if those people were not within commuting
distance.

> Another point might be that many ads prefix the offered position with "senior", and my
> guess is that most of those looking for work don't really qualify, for any reasonable
> definition of "senior".

It's quite possible that a lot of the people out in the job market
don't have the experience with Java that employers supposedly demand,
although in many cases that isn't anything to do with how long they've
been in the business (one definition of "senior"). However, I'd
question the need only for senior developers in a market for a
particular technology, since it would suggest that either everyone
seems to think that they're doing rocket science, or the technology
isn't the most appropriate or efficient way to do the work (especially
given the supposed lack of developers).

However, knowing the corporate/political undercurrents behind some of
these recruitment "advertorials", I might suggest that many of these
supposedly available Java positions don't actually exist. If the
handful of advertised Python positions do actually exist, on the other
hand, we can at least estimate the prospects of Python practitioners
with more certainty.

Paul