Want to learn programming, a few issues

[Obsoleet]

Mark- Aren't the jobs pretty much divided as well? I work in a asp.net shop utilizing C#, but the giants like Facebook/Google and so forth want people with PHP/Python skills.

It seems to depend what arena you're in. When the company that I work at started, there wasn't really a better choice to build the CMS off other than .Net. Maybe there was, as I wasn't there at the time, but that's what I'm told why we don't use something else.
To have a do-over, I don't think the company would build the product on what it is today (C# using asp.net). It'd probably go Python/Django or RoR. That said, we're not Google- who started on Python/C++ and has maintained that but moved a lot to Java. Depending on the need.

For myself going forward, I'm betting on the non-MS world. This is my personal bet and why I'm investing in Python/Django then possibly Java or C (I don't really have any needs for much beyond what Python can deliver to be honest, I'd like to learn more for the sake of being more wellrounded). That's not to say I'm opposed to learning MS tech, just not going to guide myself there willingly.
It goes without saying, technologies revolving around C, Python, SQL, Ruby, are pretty much platform independent. This is a good thing*™ for the end user, bad for <insert given company here>.

I base my statements that Java is more open because they have official ports of JVM to Linux, Windows and Solaris ect. MS's .Net implementation is contained to their OS/platform, while open source handles Mono and is usually behind featurewise. I've been advised to either do MS tech right, use VS/.Net, or not do it at all.

If I intended to develop a standalone application for my company to be downloaded and used by clients, I'd use C#/Asp.net. That said, who would do this.. I'd create a intranet application / webapp. If it needed to be offline, I'd use Python and if it needed high performance I'd find someone who knows C/C++ and wrap that code into my Python frontend. Or just use Java for the whole thing.

Anything that C#/.Net can do, Java/Python/Ruby (and associated frameworks) can do as well or better- without being tied to Microsoft. The way MS drops technologies causes fear in this plebe, they dropped Silverlight, switchup Metro apps to HTML5/JS (a good move but frightened some of the MS-loyalists), among other drops.
I'd much rather throw my hat into something a bit more open source (Ruby/Python), or at least something which might not be truly 'open' but is definitely more multiplatform like Java. Nothing wrong with C#, its an open spec, but it IS tainted by MS and will never see the adoption level that C/C++/Java has.

 

[Cogman]

Obsoleet, I wonder what your opinion is of Javascript and CSS. Both Javascript and CSS have been heavily influenced (or tainted) by Microsoft. For example, Ajax was invented by microsoft.

Hopefully, C# will be as lucky.

 

[Markbnj]

Mark- Aren't the jobs pretty much divided as well? I work in a asp.net shop utilizing C#, but the giants like Facebook/Google and so forth want people with PHP/Python skills.

Yeah, but that's my point. Whatever you choose to specialize in it will probably be because of some combination of intellectual and economic interests. In my part of the country (NJ) there seem to be a lot more jobs on the MS stack. There are hots spots in NYC for Python and php in the financial and media worlds, but Dice searches turn up a lot more asp.net work. Once you're in a particular groove and have bills to pay, it isn't that easy to cross over.

 

[cytg111]

No one ever got sued for using C#, yet MS and Google both got sued for using Java.

MS even has a legally binding promise not to sue.

And yet they call Java "more open".

Some people are just blind.

- And I think the judge just ruled on that one.

 

[Obsoleet]

Obsoleet, I wonder what your opinion is of Javascript and CSS. Both Javascript and CSS have been heavily influenced (or tainted) by Microsoft. For example, Ajax was invented by microsoft.

Hopefully, C# will be as lucky.

Hopefully, Microsoft could be as lucky to rid themselves of their CEO and get someone competent.

I'm not attacking C#, it's one of the few things MS has put out that's worthwhile. That said, it's not worth getting too commendable, being an enhanced, MS version of Java and its still slower. If you're diehard MS, I'm sure it does seem like manna from the heavens. Everyone else was/is using Java since 95.

MS has influenced an innumerable amount of tech. My view is No. They don't carry the same MS shadow that C# does for most people.

- And I think the judge just ruled on that one.

Java lawsuits have more to do with Oracle, not Java itself not being open. Oracle has always been hostile to open source, and now that they own Java of course they want $$. That's just business as usual and any "good" company that answers to it's shareholders would do it.
I would agree in the idea that the simple fact they sue over what in my view isn't legitimate- would push me away from using their stuff. That said even considering that, I'd still prefer to be a Java pro than C# guy. .Net is still less 'open' than Java. Ellison is just a smart, evil bastard. He's no Ballmer, that's for sure.