.net or/and Symfony programmer?

Question

Hello,

I am study at last year of bachelor, since 1.5 year I programming at .net platform - C#, ASP.NET, WinForms, now i planning at graduation use Silverlight and WCF. In the meantime at my department will start project to rewrite our site on Symfony. I declare to be one od 2-3 persons who participation in it.

But now i have doubt :/

Should I learning Symfony like new way to create www site (beyond ASP.NET, Silverlight)? Or focus on .net ? I think at master degree i will have subjects when i will forced to use java, so it will be my second OO language. I know that in programming is the best to be up to date, and now i try to be in that way in .net, but it's hart to know everything :/ And when i take up Symfony , my .net knowledge will suffer :/

So better is focus on "digging" .NET technology or do some things in Silverlight, WCF etc but less "digging" and participate in Symfony project ?

It is sense to be programmer in .net technologies and open source Symfony at the beginning of my programmer career?

Answer 1

Personally, I would focus on Silverlight and .NET technologies. These are very good for finding employment once you're out of school.

.NET has had quite a bit of "legs" in the industry, and doesn't seem to be reducing in its popularity over time. Symfony, while a very nice framework, doesn't have nearly the industry penetration, or the breadth of usage. (Learning .NET will open up a lot more than just web development...)

That being said, I question this:

And when i take up Symfony , my .net knowledge will suffer :/

If you're doing this as part of your department, and doing this in school, it should not take away from your free-time study of .NET (much). Also, learning a specific programming tool or methodology should never hurt your knowledge of other tools - it's about the concepts, in general...

Answer 2

As a student, expand your horizons and challenge what you already know. This is true for seasoned developers as well but especially true for students.

Answer 3

So you participate in the project to rewrite some website in Symfony? Of course you should learn it then. How much you use it in the end is your decision and will probably depend on whether you like it or not.

I don't get the point regarding your Master thesis. What has Java to do with Symfony?

Also I think the point is to learn how to program in general, the methods, concepts, etc. Which language you use in the end shouldn't matter.
It is like driving cars. The goal is to learn the whole concept, not how to drive one specific car model.

Answer 4

As stated, knowledge of .NET will help you in finding a job after graduation. But you don't have to know everything, if that is what you mean by "digging". Ability to search, learn and adapt far outweights knowing a single technology by heart in my book.

I suggest doing some exploring while you're still studying. Trying out new technologies and tools in a school project is much more stress-free than in a corporate environment.

I also agree with Felix that the point should be to learn how to program in general. Language, technology, etc. should not matter.

Answer 5

You do not need to be remain a .NET developer or a Symfony programmer for the rest of your life. Soon you will find out how it is required to have broader perspective. In fact, it is favorable when you have different skills. In time, there is a good chance that you will get bored from what you are doing if you are not making little differences. You can always present yourself as a .NET developer, on the other hand you can also advertise yourself with your interest in different topics. Besides, I believe, studying a full-featured web framework like symfony teachs you a lot. You will find yourself being able to think agile and creative!