RE: [DUG-OFFTOPIC]: What is the perception of Delphi out there?

[David at McNeill Computers]

I'd say the relative value of Delphi vs Java programmers is related to the capability and productivity of the environment.   If companies can get more bang for hours spent in a particular environment, for their given busines application, then that sets the bench mark for what they can afford, or the business value they can generate.   Java is obviously much more portable and scalable than Delphi, so bigger companies use it on bigger projects, generating more business value because they aggregate many more smaller transactions , reflected in higher pay rates.  You wouldn't attempt INCSYS (sp) in Delphi, but it could be (was?) done in some flavour of Java.    But in the NZ context, there are lots of small to medium projects, (because there are lots of small to medium companies), which Delphi does very well, without becoming unweildy. What we call small to medium (5 to 25 business staff, 1 to 3 developers), the US and Europe call miniscule to tiny, so Delphi could be more relatively relevant in NZ than the US.   So I think Delphi is a good fit for NZ's business software needs.  So, there are quite a number of developers (300 to 500?).  They perhaps aren't very visible, they vary in ability, and as with all distributed groups, generating and keeping a sense of community is important for everyone's sense of identity, sharing of ideas, mobility of employment, and ultimately our combined productivity in generating value and effiency for the NZ Inc. economy as a whole. Greater visibility may also draw in other developers using less productive tools [insert clunk-ware environment you've seen some other sucker labouring away in.. Dataflex?... ].   Therefore, encourage Delphi developers you know to join DUG. Put in your two cents worth. Put a DUG logo on your links page, and and I look forward to meeting you in person at a DUG event.   I hope your own pay scale and your productivity stay relevant.     DaveMc   David McNeill Proprietor McNeill Computers Ltd mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.mcpond.co.nz                -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, 25 June 2003 6:46 a.m. To: Multiple recipients of list offtopic Subject: [DUG-OFFTOPIC]: What is the perception of Delphi out there? Hi   The .net email list has just had a discussion on VB.NET versus C# and the merits of each. An interesting comment was that the perception (by those employing) is that C# programmers are better trained, better programmers and that VB is a toy language. The result is that C# programmers get paid more than vb.net programmers even though both languages can do essentially the same things. Perception is everything when it comes to dollars in the bank.   My question - what is the perception of Delphi in the market place? How do employers rate it when compared to other languages? And does it pay better or worse than other languages? Will Octane improve this - would hope so. I've personally had the impression that Delphi is not widely used in NZ and that the sites are few and far between - is this a correct perception - are Delphi programmers in the minority when compared to Java, c# and vb.net? Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Sometimes specialization in something used less, can pay more (if the work is around), as there are less people competing for the work.   Any thoughts? Dave Jollie Developer, TOWER NZ IT (: 09 368 4259 J: 09 306 6801 *: [EMAIL PROTECTED] .: 46 Parnell Rd, Parnell, Auckland   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This communication contains information that is confidential and the copyright of enSynergy Limited or a third party. If you are not the intended recipient of this communication please delete and destroy all copies and telephone enSynergy Limited on +64 9 9205441 immediately. If you are the intended recipient of this communication you should not copy, disclose or distribute this communication without the authority of enSynergy Limited. Any views expressed in this Communication are those of the individual sender, except where the sender specifically states them to be the views of enSynergy Limited. Except as required by law, enSynergy Limited does not represent, warrant and/or guarantee that the integrity of this communication has been maintained nor that the communication is free of errors, virus, interception or interference.