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Ask HN: what is my chance to find job in startups as a .NET developer?

2 points by hpguy ↗ HN
I'm new to US and a hardcore .NET developer so I want to know whether there are many .NET startups around or .NET is mostly irrelevant in US startup community? How about in the Valley?

The reason I ask is because I am aspired to work in startup and want to know whether I should keep developing my .NET skills or start learning Rails, iOS, node... which seem to receive much attention from the HN community.

9 comments

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steventruong
In the Valley, very unlikely. I don't have any factual statistics to throw at you but in all the years I've lived here, from purely personal observation and interactions, with exception to employees of the local Microsoft division here, I have yet to run into anyone using .NET at all. Everyone is mostly a Java, Python, Ruby, or a PHP shop. However, you might have better luck in the Seattle area as that is where Microsoft is headquartered (Redmond actually which is close to Seattle) and more likely the startups around there maybe more influenced in .NET usage.
hpguy
Thanks, Steven. Quite sad but it's good to know :)
gexla
I imagine that if Windows mobile can start grabbing more market share then there would be demand for devs who could create apps on that platform.

Otherwise, I would hit Github, Twitter, LinkedIn, meet-up info, etc to see what sort of .NET activity is coming out of the Valley.

hpguy
Thanks, that's a good advice. I'm starting searching on LinkedIn right now.
kls
If you are serious about it, I would learn either Ruby, JavaScript or Objective-C. Those are the hot markets right now and what many start-ups are focused on.
hpguy
Yeah, that what I feel from reading HN. Guess it's worth picking up one of these to make myself more relevant to the startup community.
kls
The other advice that I would give you is that before you do so, take a deep reflective look at yourself and ask, am I the type of person that likes learning new things, as well ask yourself if that will remain true as you grow older. If the answer is no, then be careful about chasing the hot technology path, because it requires constant retooling. While Ruby, JavaScript and Objective-C are hot right now in 2 years it may be Clojure, Dart and Go. You have to be prepared to retool as soon as the market starts to trend away from the currently hot technologies. There is also a trick to not jumping too soon and not waiting until everyone else has jumped on the bandwagon. Playing the cutting edge game takes a certain type of person.

If you get lucks and land in a start-up that succeeds, then the issue is less relevant, but until you do land with a success story you have to plan like your next job will be in a totally different technology stack, because it may be.

hpguy
Thanks for the advice, kls. I'm not afraid of learning new tools, I do that all the time although it's really hard to master something (much less the whole cool modern stack) within 1 or 2 years (while still keeping doing whatever paying you). I'll think about it.
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