Hi Arif,

You have to come to some very fast conclusions. Watch out.

"Since any one who have a basic knowledg of electrical/electronics can programe the PLC. "

Thats what you and many think. While the process of programming a PLC has been made very user friendly, it neverthless is not EASY. You still have to learn it.

"One thing is clear, I have noticed for last one year that there is more jobs for PLC programmer then 8051."

Not last one year. There NEVER was a job advt. for a 8051 programmer specifically mentioning it so. Look for the term "embedded programmers". You will be surprised. And this term "embedded" means much more than a 8051 in today's scenario.

PLCs are great shots when it comes to process plants and distributed I/Os that are spread over a area of many sq km. Multiple security levels for access control, process alarm tagging, multi loop PID controllers are kind of native to PLCs and trying to emulate them with systems built around 8051 by individuals will be a joke.

But standalone instruments like an Bio-medical stuff or equipments like Tread mills, video game consoles and all white goods including the audio video stuff is the terrain of the embedded stuff.

The above is not a conclusive list but just a glimpse to highlight the differences.

(So dont worry - go ahead and learn the 8051 )

Raghu