   help for the credit-crunch strapped?
  Has anyone got any good tips or links of how to get freelance (game) programming work? It could be anything Flash, C++, C#. I've looked at a couple of websites and it mostly seems to be "I want to create the best multiplayer poker site in the world (buget $50)" kind of thing.I have worked as a game programmer before so I have the skills but I can't seem to find anything that pays more than 1 penny an hour.   
  It's probably not a viable economic proposition for a programmer in a country with one of the highest costs of living in the world to look for jobs that are globally distributable. Find someone (reputable) who's looking for a programmer in the UK, or make yourself into someone with skills that are not widely available. Bottom line: Stay away from rent-a-coder.   ;  Hmmm... Perhaps I have been looking at it the wrong way. Maybe I should keep game programming as a hobby and look for different careers. As a sweeping generalisation, what sort of jobs would an ex-programmer be qualified for? What would you do if computers hadn't been invented? I am at a crossroads here and just looking for new ideas.   ;  Emigrate.  In this country, you can't clean toilets without a 2.1 Honours and 2+ years relevant experience these days because the education system has been so watered down that degrees are nearing worthlessness.I'm considering leaving.  I can't afford to live here when I finish, no doubt about that.  You're basically looking for jobs that don't exist for salaries which will barely cover the ludicrous tax bill we're all landed with.Rent-a-coder and freelancing likely won't cover your bills, especially when you're up against well established agencies and contractors with more experience.I want to be a politician, how great it would be to buy a solid gold £500k toaster with public money then have my Bugatti Veyron resprayed with the leftover change.   ;Quote:Original post by ukdeveloperEmigrate.  In this country, you can't clean toilets without a 2.1 Honours and 2+ years relevant experience these days because the education system has been so watered down that degrees are nearing worthlessness.I'll agree here. I plan to move away from here given the chance. I spent the first 3 months of this year working in Thailand, quite stunned at how far my low salary actually went. As far as I'm aware, that would stand true for most other countries in the world - the living costs in the UK are ridiculous for the quality of living you get. From what I can tell, the only benefit to living here is the benefits system - which I hope to not need to take advantage of personally, as I prefer to work for my living, more satisfaction and less boredom.What I would give to have a serviced room and cheap street food here for the price I did in Thailand...no laundry worries, no shopping worries, no doing anything other than enjoying myself after work. Anyone fancy funding me a flight back?   ;Quote:Original post by SneftelIt's probably not a viable economic proposition for a programmer in a country with one of the highest costs of living in the world to look for jobs that are globally distributable. Find someone (reputable) who's looking for a programmer in the UK, or make yourself into someone with skills that are not widely available. Bottom line: Stay away from rent-a-coder.That's some solid advice. The more you can tailor your skills towards the necessities rather than the luxuries, the better off you'll be.   ;Quote:Original post by ukdeveloperEmigrate.  In this country, you can't clean toilets without a 2.1 Honours and 2+ years relevant experience these days because the education system has been so watered down that degrees are nearing worthlessness.I'm considering leaving.  I can't afford to live here when I finish, no doubt about that.  You're basically looking for jobs that don't exist for salaries which will barely cover the ludicrous tax bill we're all landed with.Rent-a-coder and freelancing likely won't cover your bills, especially when you're up against well established agencies and contractors with more experience.I want to be a politician, how great it would be to buy a solid gold £500k toaster with public money then have my Bugatti Veyron resprayed with the leftover change.While I was shocked by the prices in Scotland, friends of mine told me it was worse in England. The stories I've heard of London sound absolutely inconceivable.Move to America. You can live a reasonable life *and* drink the water. And yes, we have freaking health insurance.;  I would love to emigrate to America. There are lots of game companies in California for example. But it does seem a long way to go for an interview! I expect if your not from America you would have to be pretty excellent for them just to consider you. I would like to learn 3D art and work at somewhere like Pixar... well I can dream. Suppose I'll just end up in somewhere like Guildford though. :(   ;Quote:Original post by capn_midnightWhile I was shocked by the prices in Scotland, friends of mine told me it was worse in England. The stories I've heard of London sound absolutely inconceivable.Yup, everyone says "Become a London City banker, you'll get a £40k starting salary!" which is unheard of for a graduate here.  Problem is, £40k in London probably means you'll only be able to afford to go hungry whilst living in a crack den.  However, take the same £40k 200 miles north and you can live like royalty in comparison.Quote:Move to America. You can live a reasonable life *and* drink the water. And yes, we have freaking health insurance.Nothing wrong with the water where I am, it's better than you get in England.For the record, I stayed with my family out in Indiana in the summer of 2001 and the tap water there made me ill.  It tasted of sweat and chemicals and was truly disgusting and if you made ice with it you could actually smell it when you took it out of the freezer.  However, it was pretty good in the other states I visited.I wouldn't mind paying for health insurance; contrary to popular belief, the NHS isn't free.  You pay National Insurance contributions which get skimmed off your pay each month along with the income tax and that's what funds it - sure, you don't have to actually pay at the point of treatment but if you're earning an honest living you've paid for some of it at some point.One thing I noticed about the US was that living costs were lower, but it also appeared to me that people earned less and had less money in general which kind of balanced it out.  But I don't suppose it matters how much excess you have providing you can actually afford to live comfortably as my family out there do.  Right now in the UK, it's pathetic pay for long hours and it all goes back to the taxman and is spent on the wrong things without the taxpayers' consent.  What seems more ethical to you: a daycare centre for disabled children, or the money going into Parliamentary expenses so Hazel Blears can buy a second Bentley to park outside her 94th taxpayer funded home in Bermuda?  For fuck's sake.   ;  How about Canada?  Cold, yes (for part of the year), but still a pretty dang good country.   