Same for me. I'll be 68 in May.

Assembler on many pre-PC mainframes and "minicomputers". I miss it each and every time I open Visual Studio.

Whenever I'm asked "is coding something you're passionate about?" I want to kick the person asking the question in the head until they expire (I don't mean that literally!). What is really being asked? Is the expected answer "I think and talk about code 24/7"? If so then that doesn't leave much time for a real life and I am not that person. One of the definitions of "passion" from Merriam-Webster is "a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept". I strongly like programming. Am I "devoted"? Nah. But I have been creating software for over 40 years, have not done any other type of work, and can't imagine doing anything else. And because I have a strong liking for the craft of programming, I keep an eye on the industry, and continuously develop as a programmer. So, if that's "passion" then I'm passionate. Otherwise, whatever... Okay, that was a bit of a rant but I do feel better now.

I am 63 years old, have been a developer since the 70's, and probably will be writing code when I'm in my 70's (who can afford to retire?). Like you, I will not tolerate age-based prejudice, or any discernible prejudice for that matter. You can take my keyboard (or whatever device I'm working with) when you pry it from my cold, dead, fingers.

At 62 I am in your age category and expect to need the keyboard pried from my cold, dead, hands. I worked in assembly language for 15 years, made my way to C, then to Cold Fusion, and now VB.Net and C#. There is most certainly age discrimination in our industry. My method of dealing with it involves selling my value as an experienced developer, while carefully manicuring and massaging the number of years I have been writing software.

Yes, for 46 years now.

I am similar to you when it comes to noise. My office is also an open-plan to encourage "collaboration". Recently we moved to a separate, quieter space. Not perfect but much, much, better. If only people a) Didn't feel the need to babble incessantly; b) Realized and regulated the volume of their speaking voices. Over the years I spent thousands of dollars on Bose noise cancelling headphones and earbuds, Shure earbuds, and noise isolating headphones. I found that noise cancelling headphones/earbuds simply didn't reduce enough outside noise. They provided some relief but I was hoping for close to 100%. Noise isolating/attenuating headphones can remove more background noise but the fit can be extremely tight so you'll have to experiment. Look for the highest noise attenuation value you can find (in db). You'll sacrifice music quality but it doesn't sound like that would be an issue for you. Good luck!

Same for me.

Depends. Sometimes music, other times silence (which I rarely get in the office!). Whoever said open plan offices produce better results wasn't a developer. I say that knowing some developers like the "collaboration" the open plan engenders. I, however, am not of that belief.

I started working as a programmer in 1971 and spent a lot of time in the "computer room" pushing buttons on consoles slightly smaller than the one in the pic. As underpowered as those computers were compared to my iPhone, I have a strange bit of nostalgia about those days. Blinking lights, tape drives, assembly language...memories. And you're totally right about many people thinking the computer age began with the introduction of the PC. They have no knowledge of computer history. Edward

Yours is the first sensible comparison of WebForms and MVC I've read. It's great that you avoid the hyperbole that so often accompanies frameworks, methodologies, etc., in favor of a simple case study. I've been grumbling to myself for some time about learning .Net MVC, but now will investigate with the mindset that I may find some actual value in it.

Gay? As in happy/excited or attracted to fonts of the same type? All good either way.

No "Tele" in the provider's name. Will have a new provider in a month or two. This will be "managed" hosting. I don't deal with the contracts but I've made those who do aware of the need to know exactly what "managed" means.

This wasn't a case of choosing the lowest bidder and getting what you pay for. This was a case of making (not entirely unreasonable) assumptions and being disappointed with the result. This experience has taught me to be clear about the details of hosting plans, including any operational concerns.

Cloud hosting is indeed expensive.

I'm not going to name names, at least until we move to our new provider. I will simply repeat "make no assumptions, ask questions".

We're in the process of moving to managed hosting with another provider. My point about asking specific questions about backups still applies though. Your data, your responsibility.

I'm still recovering from a hardware failure at our cloud host's datacenter one week ago that took the disk drive with it. There was a backup of our website folder tree but not...wait for it...of the drive. Naturally, when I was told there was a backup that was being restored to the drive I assumed the drive was being restored from the backup. I became suspicious that something was amiss when the sysadmin asked me twice how the web server settings would get restored, and looked puzzled when I replied they were on the drive, hence on the backup, and therefore when the restore was complete we need only restart the web server and voila! Well, the truth came out when the restore (such as it was) completed and I checked for key services used by the web application and found they were missing. The takeaway: make no assumptions about backups whether hosting is in-house or managed. Ask specific questions and get specific answers.

I started with Fortran and Assembler/punch cards and am now doing VB.Net. I'm 60, working, and expect to be programming for many years to come as well.

Edward...

I began coding in 1971 with a part-time job while in high school (long story). My first language was Fortran, then Assembler for 15 years, on to C for 10 years, next to Cold Fusion, and now VB.Net and C#. I still enjoy coding and have resisted going into management for that very reason. I could make more money supervising people and spending hours in meetings, but I would not be happy. I've seen more than one technician follow the management route and end up a bad manager. I realized a long time ago that I did not want to become one of those statistics. It has been many years since I put in 80+ hour weeks to meet deadlines. Those types of hours are passion killers and usually indicate a problem with project scope/timeframe, management, or even that you're being taken advantage of (in my opinion and experience). A word about "passion"; Merriam-Webster defines it as "a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something or about doing something". I wholeheartedly agree with this definition. Employers on the other hand, tend to define it as an all-consuming desire to work in complete disregard of one's personal life or health. This is a mistake. As for the new languages, frameworks, operating systems, etc., some of them are examples of "everything new is old again". But my approach is to be informed about the new fangled gadgets, keep watch on where the industry is headed, and select whatever interests me or might further my career. I don't know of an occupation my programming skills could be transferred into. I was a dancer many years ago, but at the age of 60 I live in fear of falling and breaking a hip so I think that dream will remain just that. :-D I'll likely remain that old, crusty, programmer in the corner cubicle for several years to come.