I was wondering, an average programmer who knows lisp very well--- does he
make more money than other programmers who knows their language equally
well? Hope I don't sound too mercenary, because I am not quite that---
Lisp's attraction for me is its ties with AI and its symbolic
expressiveness, etcetra....
But still, it would be nice to know if good LISPERS make lots of money----
"marcel haesok" <·········@attbi.com> writes:
> I was wondering, an average programmer who knows lisp very well--- does he
> make more money than other programmers who knows their language equally
> well? Hope I don't sound too mercenary, because I am not quite that---
> Lisp's attraction for me is its ties with AI and its symbolic
> expressiveness, etcetra....
> But still, it would be nice to know if good LISPERS make lots of money----
I'm not sure if there's really an average Lisp programmer. Towards
the more grunt-work, production end of programming, it's not so easy
to use Lisp. As is obvious to anyone who's looked for work in this
field, most jobs want C, C++, Java, and/or Perl programmers.
However, there are a few ways that knowing Lisp well can increase the
value of your labor: first, and most pedestrianly, it'll make you a
better programmer. Honestly, I write more flexible, robust code in
Perl, and I write it faster, than I did before I learned Lisp.
Second, you might be able to work it in or sneak it in. If you just
need to get something done, and no one cares what language you use,
you can often use Lisp, and often get a better product finished sooner
than most people using conventional languages. If you're working
piecemeal, you'll earn a better wage. If you're working for a wage or
salary, you ought to be able to get a higher one.
Thirdly, you'll have a better skillset from which to draw. I'm
working a contract right now that involves no deployed Lisp code.
However, the fact that I am a competant Lisp programmer has been very
valuable. "Can you do such-and-such?" Sure, by the end of the week,
because I'm going to automate the task. Rapid prototypes in Lisp have
been helpful for figuring out exactly what featureset is desired for a
certain product. And finally, Lisp excells at dealing with
poorly-defined input or constraints. Writing code-generating code in
Lisp can help get some of these advantages, even when the final
product isn't in Lisp. Adding a Lisp system to your toolbox really
makes it a powerful, professional setup, compared to most coders'
hobbiest workshops.
So, I'd say you should at minimum be able to leverage a slight
advantage out of knowing Lisp. At best, you could stand to make
considerably more money.
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