Topic: Lost My Job of 12 Years.. Wondering About IT Work in Boise

[Evergreen]

Hey, this has been a tough day for me.  Me and my father had a family business  that I have worked for over a decade.  He recently got into bankruptcy and has been struggling.  I've been putting endless hours in for him and have agreed to take a major pay cut.  Well, sadly today we had a long conversation and he agreed that he can no longer afford to keep me going and is just going to try to survive on his remaining customers, as he is not selling hardly any new products.  I've spent years helping the business and developing cutting-edge software features, but his business and money management skills have made the business sink. The features I wrote for the software probably have enabled him to survive as long as he has, because he lacked programming skills to develop the newer features that were in demand in this competitive field.  I'm hoping one day I can help him out of the mess he put himself in.  He agreed he didn't want me to go down with him.

I moved to Boise, because I really like it here and wanted to be in a place near the mountains and where I could get more into shooting.  Sadly, I am hearing Boise has a major problem with unemployment.

I am a software developer with over a decade (12 years) of experience.  That decade was spent developing some very sophisticated software projects and I have gained a multitude of experience.  I was not only working for my father's business, but also trying to learn web technologies on the side to help launch my own business.  Basically, I am aiming at becoming a Silverlight/ASP.NET developer in addition to my skills as a .NET/VB6/C++ desktop app developer.

I am wondering if anyone here has any ideas about the market for IT jobs in Boise.  I'm looking for some part-time work to help me survive while I study web-based technologies I am hoping can help me launch my own business.  Considering, how long I have been working with my father's business, I have not been on the market for a job before.  Basically, I left college when I was young to work with my father and I rigorously trained myself in software development.  I'm just wondering if I can find any type of part-time work where I can contribute my skills to developing software in the Boise area.  If anyone here in the IT field can give me any input or advice I would appreciate it.

My situation is quite miserable right now.  I, basically, moved to Boise and got myself into a lease based on the prospects that my father's business would survive throughout the year.  Unfortunately, things have not went accordingly to plan.  I am going to take a big hit in finances for a while.  I'm probably going to sell off more of my guns and ammo to try to make ends meet, as well as my car.  Basically, I'm hitting bottom, but I know I got to keep my head up.

[9Shooter]

Check here: http://oit.boisestate.edu/aboutoit/job-opportunities/

I think there will be some software developer positions opening up, and I also think the 3 SE spots listed there now have been filled, but I don't work directly for either department so just keep your eye on it and have a resume ready.  Other than have a zero tolerance policy for anything 2A, it's a good place to work with good benefits.

[zona5101]

check out bodybuilding .com
they have offices in meridian and have a number of developer/web app openings.

http://bodybuilding.catsone.com/careers/index.php

good luck!

[Evergreen]

Thanks for the support and information.  I know I have to do a lot of research.  I'm hoping I can land something in the Boise area.  I don't want to have to relocate to some hot, humid, flat crime-infested hellhole so I can land a decent paying IT job.  I love Idaho, it's people and it's mountains.  Most of the big IT booming places are in places I rather not be, like Texas, Georgia Wash DC, California, etc. 

I've been told part-time positions are especially hard to land in the Boise area.  My lack of web-development knowledge as of now will prevent me from being able to do any web-based type of software development until I become more proficient.

I know when I can become more proficient in web-based technologies, I will be much more hirable,  especially with my many years of software development experience. 

This next few months will be the most miserable for me.

[Nealio]

There are tons of Software Development jobs in Boise.  KTVB has had news coverage on the fact that so many companies are looking for software developers in Boise right now.

http://www.ktvb.com/news/Demand-for-software-engineers-in-the-Treasure-Valley-outweighs-workforce-133850863.html

Try:

Wirestone
Blackfin
Bodybuilding.com
Scentscy
Ballihoo
Silverback Learning (http://www.silverbacklearning.com/)
Lionbridge
MobileDataForce

[Evergreen]

All these places are looking for web guys.. I am seriously F--d.  I spent so many years doing app development and now my specialty, although useful, is antiquated.  Looks, like I will be having to try to start my own biz or packing my bags and looking to find a place that still needs highly skilled desktop app developers.  I'm trying to spend every bit of free time I have to learning web technology.  I wish I had not invested my soul in the family software company that failed.  

I've got lots of ideas, but the hourglass is ever running out of sand..  I think in 2-3 years I will have enough web knowledge combined with my decade of software experience where I can land a good job anywhere.  Sadly, I think this will be the roughest couple years of my life.  

If I stay in Idaho I will most likely be stuck with a tech support job, data entry or some other loathsome non-programming job where I will make enough to just get by.  Gosh, reality hit me in the face.. Sucks, when you devote your life to learning some very sophisticated technology that is no longer useful.  The reason why they don't hire desktop developers anymore is that most of them are outsourced to India.  Globalism is a bitch..  I guess places like Detroit, Wash DC, Chicago, Houston still have lot of work for app developers and don't cost a fortune to live, but those places really suck! I would be hating every day living in those places.  What can a man do to stay in his beloved mountain paradise here in the NW .  

I'm hating life today.  But, I won't give up hope.  Maybe, I can see about contracting some work to businesses around to make enough money to keep the ship from sinking, while I train myself in web technology.

[idahobuckeye]

Don't know if this helps, but I have a friend who said that St. Luke's is looking for some IT guys.  He said that he could set up a meet with HR and the powers that be that will do the hiring.  I just sent him an email asking him the particulars and once I get the info I'll definitely pass it along to you.  Don't know if IT is what your looking for but if it pays the bills and keeps you in Idaho(which it seems like you enjoy) then you might give it a shot.

Idahobuckeye

[Evergreen]

I appreciate your help Buckeye very much.  I'm not sure what type of positions they are looking for, but I'm not sure if I will have the unique skill set they want.  Every business has such specific demands for IT positions, that it is like a roll of the dice if the one particular one they desire fits your criteria.  The thing about software is that there is so many various technologies in use.  Some people want Linux developers and others want Windows developers, e.g.  Being a Windows developer, I would be totally unqualified to program a Linux system.    

I will for the next four months be trying to launch a business developing and selling imaging software for dental offices that would be used in conjunction with the dental practice management software for my father's business (where I was laid off), so finding a Part-Time IT position for some extra cash would be helpful.  I'd be interested perhaps in hearing what positions they have available.   My business ventures are a gamble and if they fail, I may be out of more money and time, so part-time work to supplement would be nice.  

Also, because I have worked for the same company for 12 years, I have never needed to go out on the market looking for a job.  I don't have any official resume to show anybody and will need to hire some type of job consultant who can help me construct one.  I do have a giant portfolio of software projects that I engineered that I could show a potential employer.  

Anyway, I appreciate you thinking to help me..   I do type 100wpm, so I know I could be a paper pusher of some sort or do secretarial work.  A rather disgraceful position for someone who thought of himself as a hardcore software developer all these years.  But, these are tough times.

[Grumblecakes]

Never hurts to apply for a job. the worse they can do is say no. Plus i view it as a learning experience, each time i do the whole app process i get better at it. And interviews can be tough if you haven't done many so the experience helps.

[Scarecrow]

So, what's it like to be the fastest typist in the world?

[Evergreen]

So, what's it like to be the fastest typist in the world?

  Crap you're right, you got me there.. I guess I forgot the speed measurements for typing.. It's been over 20 years since I used Mavis Beacon typing programs that show you your score.  I may be one of the fastest typists in the world, but I see the record is 215 wpm. Ok, let's just say I am faster than almost any person I ever met.. When you code software you spend endless hours typing up loads of junk you would never think of typing.   I don't own a pair of carpal tunnel braces for nothing.


I can definitely use the experience of a job interview.  The thought of it sounds terrifying..  The job descriptions I am reading seem so comprehensive and demanding, yet somehow I know I have a deep understanding of software and a lot of experience in field, yet I am very poor at advertising myself.  I seriously think , considering the excessive demands on most programming job descriptions, that many people must B.S. their way, at least partially, into many of these positions.  

I was suppose to be the heir of the family business, which I helped build, but sadly our business has been sinking against all the big corporate fish in the sea.  Mom and pop (father/son in my case) businesses just have a hard time keeping afloat.  I have a few more plans up my sleeve, but I am preparing for the worse and would like a little taste of the IT job market, which I may soon be forced to join.  Maybe sooner than later.  If this EMR Imaging software I am developing flops after its release in a few months, I will be scrounging to survive.

[9Shooter]

I don't have a timeline on this, but BSU will likely be looking for SharePoint developers at some point.  I believe that's .NET stuff.  We also just posted an opening for an Application Administrator, which would be on my team.  The link to OIT I posted above should have that one listed now.

[Evergreen]

Thanks 9Shooter for the link..  It looks like the job has a lot of requirements for web knowledge which I don't have.. Wish I knew how to run an Apache or IIS Server.  Well, I know the basics of IIS, but still have a way go to before I can call myself a proficient expert.  I got gazillions of pages of books that I am inspired to read on the subject, as hosting and managing  servers is a profession in itself, yet every web developer should know how to do it well.  

Sharepoint is all web-based and the .NET Framework is quite large.  I'm totally ignorant about Sharepoint, but I am sure, like many other things, I should get familiar with it and could probably pick it up in not much time.  However, if a company wants a "Sharepoint Developer", well I cannot lie and say I am.  The technology changes faster than most people can keep up with.  Like I have yet to even learn WPF, as I always used the WinForms environment of .NET.

It seems like most jobs these days have deep requirements for web-knowledge in conjunction with application dev knowledge. THis is my area of weakness.  In a couple of years, if  I can get time to get proficient in ASP.NET/Win2k Server/IIS I will have a good shot at the high pay jobs, because I can combine that web knowledge with over a decade of application dev experience.

Being like a co-owner/special employee of the same business for like 12 years, I only have one employer to list on the resume.  A lot of people like to see a long list of employers and yet, I have only had my one and only.  I'm not sure how that would look on a resume.  That is why I am hoping a portfolio of applications would help to entice potential employers rather than a resume showing work at only one business.


The pay for the Software Application Admin looks good and I am sure it's nice working at BSU, but I most likely will not be qualified. The requirement list for that position looks exhaustive.