It's an Object-Oriented World!

Last Modified: December 10, 1995

Although the jury is still out on the productivity gains that can be attained by a totally object-oriented approach to development, there are definite advantages to relying on a modicum of object-oriented principles --- with the usual caveat that these principles be executed in the correct manner.

One indisputable fact, though, is that from a career standpoint, object-oriented languages do pay a premium. The cynic in each of us may ask about the what's happening to this world where the correlation between usefulness/productivity/value and payscale is out of whack. Why are our employers paying astronomical rates for pie-in-the-sky technologies and paying a pittance for workhorse COBOL/CICS programmers who support mission-critical, enterprise, legacy systems?

Are our corporate patrons paying the premium for pie-in-the-sky technologies because of the promise of those technologies? So that they can squeeze out a competitive advantage in their respective industries if they make the right judgment about the future?

Perhaps, perhaps.

But ours here is not to delve into philosophical issues. Our priority here is to identify supply and demand shortages and to capitalize on resulting opportunities. Sounds like too much of a mercenary, do I? Well, you got that right!

So, without further ado, here are some links to get you started in the object oriented world.

• Object Oriented Programming . Discusses the benefits of object oriented programming and major differences between relational database management systems and object oriented database systems --- a classic debate, which is always initiated by the object oriented views, of course.
• What is Object Oriented Software? A short, beginner's guide to OOP.
• Intro to the Booch Method . Might be a little dry reading, but it summarizes a widely used object oriented method, without apparent bias. It shows you how to map Booch symbols to C++.
• Object Oriented Page . Lots and lots of information about all things object oriented.

Follow the links above for more material on object oriented principles. There are plenty! Yup, there's a lot of interest on the subject --- especially in the academic world.

The intent here is simply to whet your interest in the subject. Now it's up to you to follow up. Best regards!

Enjoy!
Ruperto Elpusan Jr.

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