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0 pointscandiodari7y ago0 comments

Perhaps it's more of a case of there being 2 issues:

  domain specific knowledge (e.g. 3d math, usability)

  correct program writing

And you do them in sequence rather than in parallel (and then of course your boss declares phase 2 doesn't get any of your time).

Lots of software engineers really emphasize the second part. But this is like insisting on correct shoelace tying in a shoe factory ... it's nice, but without making a shoe in the first place there is no shoe and no need for shoelaces. And when it comes to choosing between no shoe or badly tied shoelaces ... the choice is clear.

This is why the neverending complaint of software engineers that no-one cares about correctness. Entirely true. You can do without correctness (if there's anything Microsoft taught us), but you cannot do without domain knowledge.

And it's a bit self-serving: guess which one is most often missing in software engineers ?

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pjmlp7y ago

Actually, coming from a country where Informatics Engineering is an actual professional title, I think adoption of such practices around the world, instead of allowing somone to name themselves engineer after a six weeks bootcamp would already help a lot regarding the quality of work output.

Any good certified engineers degree takes care that students have a concern for acquiring domain specific knowledge and adopt best practices.

Another thing would be liability, people just need to sue more often IT companies, so that security is actually taken up seriously.

Too many CVEs in the last couple of months? The servers get grounded, product recalls are required from state.

candiodariOP7y ago

I'm not saying correct software has no advantages. Quite the opposite: I state and acknowledge the advantages. But it's an amplifier: without something to amplify (which boils down to domain knowledge) it's like owning a billion dollars buried on the moon : interesting, even cool but fundamentally useless.

Software quality has advantages for companies that are very strongly in the "milking their 100% understood market where they have an overwhelming competitive advantage" phase. Large companies. And is between neutral and a disadvantage for nearly everyone else.

That doesn't mean you can't take pride in good software. Or that it isn't an accomplishment. But you want to write quality software for money ? Get a job at Google/Facebook. Better yet, get one at Bank of America, Exxon Mobil or Boeing. Or research it at university.

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