Software costs

[ITContractorUK]

Hi,
I am thinking about leaving my permanent job to become a contractor instead.
I have seen a number of .NET developer contract jobs around the London area so it shouldn't hopefully be too hard to find a contract.

However, I have a question:
Do I have to pay for all the software that I need to build the systems (eg. Visual Studio, Expression Blend etc) or is that something that the client will provide?

I guess that depends on the contract and is something you can negotiate but how does it usually work?

Thanks.

[oversteer]

The company will generally provide PC / software for you to use. It would be very unusual if they didn't.

If you have any personal software / IDE etc you prefer using, then you should bring it on a USB etc, and be prepared to get into battles with the IT department on getting the permission to install it..

[woodyuk]

Dont panic too much about software licenses. You can get a MSDN Universal license for around £1500 (last time I checked) and thats all Microsoft licenses (office, dev, windows and all betas etc). There is also a deal with Technet as well - which is even cheaper, as long as you can prove your building a product.

[lxt04]

The company will generally provide PC / software for you to use. It would be very unusual if they didn't.

I'm sorry, but this simply isn't true.

One of the main distinctions between a contractor and an employee is the provision of equipment. Read this:

HM Revenue & Customs: Employment status


Now, some companies may choose to provision contractors with computers for security reasons, but many don't. And it's perfectly normal for companies to expect contractors to bring their own software. It very much depends on the role, company, and job. This isn't simply a small/large company divide either - I bring and use my own equipment for development to a big FTSE100 client on a regular basis.

[oversteer]

Oops yes, sorry, play the game play the game!

I'm not coming in tomorrow, working from home Tuesday, and I'm sending my substitute on Wednesday.

[SueEllen]

I guess that depends on the contract and is something you can negotiate but how does it usually work? .

There is no usual. Everything depends on the client.

[CheeseSlice]

There is no usual. Everything depends on the client.

WSS

My last contract required me to supply my own laptop and software.
One before that refused to let me plug mine in to their network, and supplied their own for me to use.

[eek]

I'm sorry, but this simply isn't true.

One of the main distinctions between a contractor and an employee is the provision of equipment. Read this:

HM Revenue & Customs: Employment status


Now, some companies may choose to provision contractors with computers for security reasons, but many don't. And it's perfectly normal for companies to expect contractors to bring their own software. It very much depends on the role, company, and job. This isn't simply a small/large company divide either - I bring and use my own equipment for development to a big FTSE100 client on a regular basis.

While I can provide my own equipment (trust me it would be better than the crap I'm usually presented with) I've never had to do so or been allowed to do so. Most IT departments now insist on using company machines for security reasons.

To be honest an MSDN licence won't break the bank and its worth having the software available on the off chance you need something anyway.

Don't bet on there being that many real jobs tho my recent search shows the same few jobs appearing multiple times.

[Spacecadet]

These days I usually insist on using my own laptop and software unless they have certain special arrangements which would preclude that i.e. data sensitivity

out of 7 contracts in the past 4 and half years I've used my own laptop on 4 of them..
I've bought and paid for all the dev software I use/need and can get a full test rig running on my laptop independantly of their systems. It's great for working from home without VPN.

Only thing which is a pain in the arse is when you end up having to use their web mail system

It depends on what you do but it's not about playing "the game", unless the game is being a decent consultant who can turn up on day 1 with all the tools required to do the job!

[d000hg]

Interesting SpaceCadet, I'm quite impressed you managed to get that approach working so often with IT departments who presumably aren't used to such things. How do you go about this - inform them in advance or turn up with your own laptop and just ignore the PC they put on your desktop? Do you even tell the IT people, or do you let them supply you a nework login and use it on your own PC?

To the original poster... I get the impression most 'proper' contracting roles involve being given a workstation like everyone else has. If you are freelancing rather than contracting though, that's different. And if the work you're doing is on a new system requiring software they don't already use (like Expression for example) then having your own copy might be sensible.