[mgutz]

Heck, I took a big pay cut to be happier. I was a .NET enterprise developer in the six figures.

There is something about building things outside the box instead of being part of an assembly line at corporate shops. The lack of politics and endless meetings is a bonus too. It's not always about the money.

[dos1]

This thread is indicative of the bias I see on HN. .Net and Java are "uncool" and therefore must not be suited for solving real world problems or doing interesting things. They are also often synonymous with bloated corporate bureaucracies and meetings. By these same stereotypes, should I assume that every Ruby developer is living in a party house with his 4 other co-founders, eating ramen and making social networking applications?

[droithomme]

It's not bias, it's just a realistic observation of the market forces at work. People are willing to put up with bureaucracy and dull projects for more pay. There is no shortage of talent, there is merely an abundance of employers who are not realistic about market rates.

[phillmv]

Until recently those were the only situations in which you could get a job as a Ruby developer – hamming it out on your own, in a small startup or at a consultancy.

It's still hard to get an Enterprise job as a Ruby developer.

Hence the stereotype.

[euroclydon]

Wrong. Four words: "Nature of the work"

[georgieporgie]

.Net and Java are "uncool"

I think he was saying that the typical Enterprise jobs are uncool, not that .Net is necessarily so.