Just out of curiosity, what is the cut off point between young and old programmers? If it's somewhere between 40-50, I would agree that you see fewer programmers in this age range. But I think that also has something to do with fewer positions available at the top compared to all the junior level positions.
If you assume the average programmer will start their career by their mid 20s, ten years seems a little early for "old" programmers to start a mass defection. I would not be surprised if many of the commenters here could be considered "old programmers" by that definition. I don't have a big sample, but in my experience, you're not an "old" programmer until you hit 45-50.
If you assume the average programmer will start their career by their mid 20s, ten years seems a little early for "old" programmers to start a mass defection. I would not be surprised if many of the commenters here could be considered "old programmers" by that definition. I don't have a big sample, but in my experience, you're not an "old" programmer until you hit 45-50.