I am trying to master Javascript - only to be told that if I am over 35 I am “elderly”
Wow
https://medium.com/madhash/do-dev-careers-really-die-at-35-7a694ddc208b
Well shoot, I guess at 44 then I might as well hang up the towel. And here I thought I had another 30 years in me. 
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I’m well over 35 and still happily developing…
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my brother is 36. been learning Python Scripting, JavaScript and ReactJS in his spare time as a full time architect and father. He started 2 months through pandemic, so it’s been a year and proofs that age and current occupations won’t hinder you.
I think the issue really is after 35 you are too wise to work 16 hour days. I still write programs at 72 but there are other things important in life.
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I’m 52 and still spend a fair bit of my time doing development work on the side. I find it helps me to relax and feel as if I’m doing something tangible and constructive, and I find that it helps to exercise my mind in ways that are beneficial and for which opportunities don’t arise as often in my actual job.
Languages and paradigms slip in and out of fashion, but the act of programming remains largely unchanged. One thing that does change quite a lot are the practices and tools that take the act of programming and turn it into development. Keeping my hand in that game helps me to understand and work with the people who create the software that process and manage the information that I’m tasked with securing.
Much of the work that was done by other IT roles is being shifted to developers, so it’s becoming increasingly important for (even older) managers to have a good understanding of how software comes to be and what the people who create it have to do.
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This is a timely topic, as I potentially could be a few years out from military retirement. My background education is Computer Science and Info Sys Mgmt, but haven’t worked in the field.
I was starting to dust off my skills, not that I think I’ll be competitive as an entry level programmer, but maybe conversant enough to try to break into the field.
I guess time will tell!
I was always a hardware guy, networks, servers, phone systems, etc. But the programmers made all that stuff useful.
When I retired at 70 our lead programmer, a youngster in his late 50’s was still at it. And because he is knowledgeable in IBM tech that fell out of favor decades ago, he is almost irreplaceable. Don’t let the children get you down.
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Also…if you look at the modern focus on pushing STEM and software development to young people, it makes all the sense in the world that the numbers would skew young if you’re going purely on percentages.
Adding a ton of people to the bottom end of a distribution and asking why similar numbers of people didn’t magically show up at the top end is…well…let’s just say it makes me wonder if the person asking the question has ever debugged any code more complicated than “hello, world”. 
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I am old enough to have 35-year-old children (without anybody raising an eyebrow).
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My favorite part is in the final paragraph where she refers to people in their early 30s as “moving into the third decade of life.” Leave it to a programmer to make an off-by-one error.
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Not if you start numbering at decade 0. But still, “leave it to a programmer”.
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39, and have been coding/developing since before 10. Professionally since 18. Still going strong, I think 
However, the below was an eye opening and interesting read that made me think.
Disrupted: My Misadventure in the Start-Up Bubble by Dan Lyons
Ditto (child, in my case) and still coding.
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50 and wrote my first programs age 11 on a VIC-20
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36 and after a few years in management, looking to get back into the hands on Dev work now. Things definitely don’t need to be over if you don’t want them to be.Anecdotally, the key thing I’ve seen for good devs to keep working in the field and not move onto other roles are:
- Getting senior enough and valuable enough that you can command a work-life balance.
- Actually working on intellectually stimulating stuff. If you’ve gotten pigeon-holed into maintaining a specific system and nothing is ever new, it’s easy to get bored and disillusioned.
When I see that people don’t have those things, or they’re pursuing more money, that’s when I see them move into project management or people management.
Anyway, just my two cents.
Currently 41 and I code, am I doing it wrong?
Hey! Me too! 
(something, something, something, 20 characters)
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This all day long. I’ve learned that those those that start talking about ageism stuff are essentially saying “I want someone I can mold in my ways regardless of whether it’s good or bad for them”
Older employees know that game all too well. We’ve already paid our dues.
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