Ah Netscape, between 1993-97 I used Netscape Navigator on SunOS, HP-UX and then WinNT. Then I switched to IE. Didn't know there were usable version of it even now. Does anyone remember Netscape Messenger for POP email? There was also Netscape Communicator, don't remember what that was... Also used Mosaic for few month in 93 before discovering Netscape.

El Corazon wrote:

Outsourcing is not a function of lack of jobs, but rather a function of wanting to pay less for a given job.... the result is less quality for less money. It hurts the real programmers in India, and in the USA and everywhere.

Again, in India that statement doesn't hold good. Here people are thoroughly overpaid for the work they do. Too much demand for programmers due to masive outsourcing has led to a situation where even a third rate programmer can get a highly paid job. Worse part is, they think they deserve it. One has to interview 100s of candidates to find a real programmer, they are an endangered species. We normally hire smart fresh graduates and teach them programming, there is no other choice. Pardon my rant, since I am part of senior management despite being a programmer, I see all these very closely during the recruitment process. Running a small product company in such an environment is no joke.

Hello Folks, I am from the outsourcing capital of the world. Alright, don't shoot, I am one of guys who can program. I am in product development, mostly telephony related. I wrote my first program in 'C' back in 1989, and switched to 8086 assembly for a year and finally into C++ in 1991, I am still with it. I first heard about STL from BS himself when he presented it in 1994 at C++ 11th birthday event at AT&T Holmdel (NJ). So I have been around. ;-) I guess you are all talking about situation in US, but India is in no better shape. Despite having so many programming vacancies, hardly anybody knows programming anymore. Therefore, blaming the situation on lack of jobs (out-sourcing) can't be right. IMHO, programming can be taught only by programmers, and in India no programmer would take up a teaching job. The difference in pay for an University teacher and a corporate programmer is too much. Even a programmer with a passion for teaching (like me) can't imagine switching to a teaching career. I first considered teaching pro bono at the local university, then I gave up. The C++ syllabus they had is cast in stone, new and delete is considered advance programing and templates are not even menttioned. Besides, if I ignore the lousy syllabus and teach those kids some real C++, they will flunk the exam since the programs will float way above the examiners understanding of C++. The only way to learn real programming is via books and Internet, that is if the person is interested enough to do it. But the onslaught of easy languages like C#/Java/VB don't make it easy.