Software engineers are in demand now than ever before. There are certain countries where you'll earn more money for your skill and hard work. Here's a list of the 12 countries where software engineering pays the most on average.

12. France: $54,700

Employees also in the country where they get one of the best qualities of life.

11. United Kingdom: $56,200

The rate is around $13,000 more than an average employee in the country.

10. Canada: $57,500

The job was ranked 12th best in a 2015 Best Jobs article from Canadian Business.

9. New Zealand: $59,600

The country has a shortage of software engineers.

8. Sweden: $61,400

No shortages but the role is in demand.

7. Germany: $63,800

SAP and Siemens is one of the world's largest corporations and based here.

6. Australia: $65,900

Software engineers earn around $4,000 more than the average citizen.

5. Israel: $70,700

It is Bloomberg's 6th most favorable countries for tech firms, making it a software engineer's dream.

4. Denmark: $71,500

Polaris has just bought 65% of Configit and will expand the company.

3. United States: $76,000

It is the home of Silicon Valley, and software engineers earn around $20,000 more than the average citizen.

2. Norway: $81,400

The downside here is the pay is $15,000 on average less than the average worker.

1. Switzerland: $104,200

This is just an average, and many are paid much more!

Day in the life...Software Engineer

Windows 10 has been on the market for a full month at this point. Gamers on Stream have always been very found of the Windows operating system, using it over 95% of the time to play games on Stream. And those using Windows 10 have grown considerably fast from 14% to 17% since the official launch. Gamers need a high performance operating system, and are now moving from Windows 7 and Windows 8 to Windows 10. Thus, they perceive it as a reliably platform for heavy use.

This weeks OpenStack Summit in Vancouver showcased some of the ways large corporations and newer startups have used the OpenStack framework to build some cool applications. Companies like HP, IBM, and Redhat along with SwiftStack and Bluebox were on-hand at the conference to show developers what is new in cloud computing. We all know that OpenStack has been one of the most popular open source development projects ever. And companies like Rackspace use the framework to host applications at their data centers.

App developers will be getting something new from Microsoft when the company releases Windows 10 according to news coming out of Build 2015, the Microsoft developers conference. The operating system designed to work on PCs, Phones, and Tablets, will be open to almost all developers including some that worked on Android and iOS when it is released later this year. The Microsoft store currently contains near 585,000 apps which is about half of what Google and Apple offer in their stores. So new apps are greatly needed to keep their products useful and competitive.

Microsoft is looking to increase the number of autistic workers employed at the large technology company. Hiring managers at Microsoft recently voiced their opinion that autistic employees offer many skills that are need in the technology field including the ability to recall data, think at deep levels and perform well writing code. There are many different levels of autism on the spectrum with some appearing normal in all situations.

American Commitment has put together a petition of over 500,000 Americans who want the FCC to overturn the recent Net Neutrality decision. The group American Commitment does get some funding from the Koch Brothers. The petitions went to two representatives and one Senator, based open the location of the person who signed the petition. The group feels the recent mid-term elections was a clear sign that the country wants smaller government, and the FCC action goes in the complete wrong direction, expanding the role of the federal government.

How many people are testing Microsoft’s new operating system? How about 1.7 million people have signed up to be early testers. Windows 10, is a big deal for Microsoft and loyal fans who want something better than the operating system they got with Windows 8, a disappointment. At a company event today, Windows 10: The Next Chapter, executives shared what to expect with the new software when it is made available. They discussed a new browser that is coming, the price structure that will include free versions for some, and even the use of holograms for virtual workspaces.

The Xbox Live network went down over Christmas when a DDos (distributed denial of service) attack was launched against it. Now before the end of the year, hackers from the group H4LT have put the Xbox SDK (software development kit) on the internet for anyone to download. With a tweet @notHALT, the group linked to the DSK which will allow anyone to develop games for the platform. The company does not openly give the development kit away. And developers will not be able to put their creations with the kit in Microsoft owned store fronts but the release of the kit opens up for an open source store front to emerge.

CodeEd is a Boston company that teaches computer programming to girls in middle school to create interest and help them become more proficient. The idea behind the project is to bring in volunteers that work in technology to work on creative projects with middle school and high school students so that they will pursue careers in technology and decrease the gender gap that currently exists. The Godaddy involvement includes recruiting volunteers and providing resources so the classes can continue.

Elements of the Microsoft .NET Framework version 3.0 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Where To Learn .Net Development For Free

People who are interested in learning .net development will be pleased to know that they can learn it online and for free. Below are three of the best websites that teaches people about .net, and for free too.