[olug] ANN: Omaha Python Users Group Meeting, May 10

[Jeff Hinrichs - DM&T]

On 5/8/07, Dave Hull <dphull at gmail.com> wrote:
> Just curious what the turn out is like for the PUG?
>
> I'm trying to hire a student developer (at KU) with Python experience
> and haven't had much luck finding one. The one I did interview with
> Python experience asked me during the interview why I wouldn't use
> "PHP for the project since there's lots of PHP code available since
> it's open source."
>
> Wtf?
The first meeting since we reformed had 2 people (including me).  I
know there are more because prior to the last time we gathered was
back 2001, when I got back from PyCon, and there was 12 showing up in
person.

I've got hopes for a bump this summer because there is a new class at
UNO, CIST 1300 which is web development.  Apache is the only server
listed and Python is the only language for the course.  I've been
posting flyers around campus (CompSci and Eng) and they have been
getting attention -- but it's finals time:(  and the class starts in
the Summer session.  I've emailed the prof already to let him know
about us.

So, no, currently Omaha is not flush with python programmers.  In
fact, I belong to the Dynamic Languages UG and it is rather small and
most there don't use them(groovy, lisp, etc) on the job.  I, however,
am a lucky and happy paid programmer who gets to use python :)

php -- I won't curse it since it's the lever I used to escape IIS and
ASP -- however it's a language whose time has come and gone.  Python
is much more productive.  I've kicked some of the frameworks around
TG, Pylons, Django but I still like mod_python + vampire the best
(vampire = mod_python::publisher++)  I do lots of intergration with
legacy data and the frameworks can get in the way -- I do like a lot
of the ideas coming out of the wsgi based frameworks - some of it I
cannibalize and integrate.  When graham(a mod_python developer) gets
mod_wsgi a little bit closer to production, I'll start looking again.

Sorry to hear that you haven't had luck @ KU -- stick with it, they'll
come around, MS did<g>.  Even though I loathe a lot of things about
MS, the recent announcements that include the word Python have been
nice to hear -- even though they'll try their old proprietary tricks
with it -- they won't be able to put the cork back in the bottle when
developers can see what Python can do.

My current advice is not to look for an experienced python programmer
-- look for a really good programmer, who knows a few(2-3) languages,
that wants to expand their knowledge.  None of my interns had more
than a cursory look at the language when I brought them on.  You could
always try the Python Job Board, http://www.python.org/community/jobs/
it's free and if you can live with a remote worker you could just find
what you are looking to get.

-jeff